Hope, education, young people and environmental action. I went to 3 meetings yesterday all of which were awesome. One was a Transition Towns gathering, filled with people with passion to shape a sustainable future in their communities. I shared my belief that love will reconnect and rebuild resiliant communities - we all want healthy safe places to live for us and our families, good food, clean air, clean water, quality of life - recognising our common values brings us together - and told stories about the projects the group I am involved with is creating. The energy was warm and wonderful.
The second was to discuss funding the development of sustainability educational resources. The third was a group of young people who are organising a two day "Art and Activism" workshop in the school holidays. I am facilitating two leadership/action sessions for them and helping organise. I am filled with respect and love for these young people, their sense of fun, their sense of right action and the way they are prepared to walk their talk.
After the meeting a met a young man and we had quite an intense discussion about the state of the world. He was quoting things he'd learned from books - some dated - I was telling him stories from my work in media and with communities.
He kept trying to talk me down and tell me "how it is" on the basis of his learned theory.
I was getting irritated, so became very present and listened to what he was saying. I heard his statement "I want to become highly qualified so people will listen to and respect what I am saying."
I didn't brush him off but listened to his arguments. When he had finished I said "you say that is how the world is but that is not the world I live in.  That is not my personal experience. I don't share your views. I don't agree with your generalisations and assumptions."
I felt my heart fill with love and compassion for this young man, trapped in the system of competition and external measurement. Disconnected from his feelings.
I told him when he spouted "facts" at me but dismissed my real life experience I felt talked "at" not talked to. I felt not valued for who I was and what I brought to the conversation. I also told him that if he really wanted people to hear and respect his messages, to think about learning to speak from his heart, not his head. In my personal opinion qualifications were a poor relation to passion.
The conversation ended with me thanking him for such an interesting conversation and saying not to apologise, that we are all here to learn and grow off each other. I told him it was an amazing thing to have such deep conversations with people who I have just met and how special that was. We hugged.
It remeinded me again to look deeper, beyond the "irritation" the wound and see the divine. To let the heart be open.
xI

Gazing at the ocean and breathing in the sea air..

I recognise that what I do is not who I am, and living with the totality of being in each moment opens the door to infinite possibility.