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Dear Masud and All,<br>
<br>
For several years we (my partner and I) hosted a Wisdom Circle every
month. This was open to anyone to attend and we had a core group of
regulars along with dabblers. We used a talking stick which was passed
once or twice in a circle (depending on the number of people) and then
placed in the middle for anyone to take as they were moved. We use a
set of "constants" rather than rules, which define the space of respect
for each other and those outside the circle who might be impacted by
our discussions. Other than that, anything goes.<br>
<br>
We never had a set agenda. This grew organically from the sharing of
the members of each circle. Interestingly, every time we gathered,
there was a significant theme that would arise very quickly.<br>
<br>
Every time we gathered, it was profound. People shared truly from the
heart and all grew just from being there. People developed an
incredible respect for the power of the "stick" to open their hearts.
(of course it's not the stick at all...)<br>
<br>
Interestingly, it was 9/11 that stopped them. We had been meeting for
years once a month with a substantial number of attendees (for a home
meeting). Then 9/11 happened and it just ended. People stopped coming.<br>
<br>
We still hold these Wisdom Circles for special groups and at all of the
retreats we run. They are always powerful catalysts for the members of
each circle.<br>
<br>
I never thought of these as "open space" but now that i look at it, i
suppose they are.<br>
<br>
duff<br>
<br>
Masud Sheikh wrote:
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<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;">Dear all,</span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;">There is
something I wish to share with
you:</span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;">A couple
of weeks ago, I invited some
friends for dinner. At the end of the dinner, I suggested a topic for
conversation, and to channel the conversation, used a modified process
to what
I had seen used for Scott Peck’s “Community Building Workshop”.
I read the story of the Rabbi’s Gift (which basically conveys the
message
that answers have to come from within the group, and for that to
happen, there
needs to be respect for all) asked for a few minutes of silence, and
got a
talking stick that people picked up when they wished to speak. The
topic I
chose was “Integrating visible minorities in society” (Like me,
many invitees fell in this category). People appreciated the process
used. Of
course, we barely got into the nitty-gritty of the matter. </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="1"><span
style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;">Have any
of you done, or considered
doing something similar, using Open Space?</span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="1"><span
style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;">My
interest is getting conversations
going on issues that are important these days. And perhaps have
follow-on
sessions for a societal topic like the one mentioned above.</span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="1"><span
style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;">Take care,
all of you</span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="navy" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: navy;">Masud </span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Arial" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></font></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font color="#8e2323" face="Verdana" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Verdana; color: rgb(142, 35, 35);"
lang="EN-GB">There is something
called learning at a rather small level of organisation. At a much
higher
gestalt level, <b><span style="font-weight: bold;">learning is called
evolution </span></b>–
Gregory Bateson</span></font></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36pt;"><font
face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></font></p>
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