Transition Whatcom

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Heart and Soul

An opportunity for us all to work together and support each other on Heart and Soul issues and activities. Please add your projects, events, questions and ideas here.

Location: Whatcom County
Members: 77
Latest Activity: Nov 12, 2016

Discussion Forum

Sat. 2/18: Christ in the Cosmos / The Journey of the Universe

Started by David MacLeod. Last reply by Patricia Herlevi Apr 14, 2012. 1 Reply

Community Space for Rent

Started by LAURIE RISKIN Sep 24, 2011. 0 Replies

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Comment by Rev. Meredith Ann Murray on November 5, 2009 at 12:17am
I'll be there! Here are the notes from the last meeting:

Oct. 5, 2009 Transition Whatcom’s “Heart and Soul” group.

We invite people to another way of thinking!

Ideas around our group’s purpose:

 We help those with pre-traumatic stress disorder. Let them know that it’ll be okay, that we can make this “transition” together.
 Educate people about the psychology of change.
 Recognize the need to find our way back to Nature. Promote this as our first community.
 Introduce the concept of Addiction (to oil) and along with that comes denial. Understand that everyone’s at different stages of acceptance.
 Assist with the inner work so that the outer work has a better chance of success. INVITE people to join, letting them know the essential nature of this work.
 Start imagining and VISIONING a positive future.
 Empower people to make the needed changes for a successful transition to a post-oil world.
 Come home to our selves – our hearts and souls – through creativity, music, art, etc.
 Envision a culture imbued with heart and soul then have a plan that works backwards to build it!

What are some barriers we may encounter?
People may BOLT when they hear “inner” work or “spiritual.” How can we best promote this work despite the resistance? One idea: Just DO IT without telling folks that’s what you’re doing!

We are more than labels – environmentalist, spiritual person, businessperson, etc. We are all multi-dimensional beings and complex. It is part of our purpose to create a SAFE container for change – make it welcoming.

“Warmth to create the possibility of growth.” Burke Mulvaney, group member

Favorite things:
Community, connecting with like-minded people, learning we are not alone!

We need to be sensitive to how we bring elements into meetings or events to help people connect with their hearts. Ideas such as “Turn to your neighbor and introduce yourself, telling them why you are here”, etc. are good. Have several of these exercises throughout the event and end with a song! Burke and Jan Peters volunteered to work on a simple song that everyone could easily learn and sing.

Themes: Local resilience, creativity, community, local culture and resources.

Make it efficient, effective, and most of all, FUN!!!

Rebuild community with a sense of INTERDEPENCE. Working together and communicating we can create a cultural Renaissance and new opportunities! Hold the vision of the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part, not a mechanistic Universe of separate parts. We are SELF-ORGANIZING in systems! Good book about this: Leadership and the New Science by Margaret Wheatley.

WE made the systems we live in so we can change them! Now we have economic growth based on cheap fossil fuel consumption and consumerism. Our consciousness must progress beyond this for us to survive and THRIVE!

Use: “Opening Space for Emerging Order” technology (Harrison Owen)
http://www.openspaceworld.com/

Sometimes it seems as if we are “preaching to the choir” but we can ask people to remember to invite new people, their neighbors, family, students, teachers! Keep coming back and we’ll build on community.

If it is sustained and people feel connected, they will want to return. Ideas on how to do this:

 Start with a potluck or sharing bounty from our gardens.

 Have music

 Join hands in a circle and sing or set an intention as a group. Everyone say one word on why they are there, why they are excited about this work, why they have hope for the world.

 Say in one sentence, “I see a world where……” and hear each person’s vision.

 Breathe together.

 Moment of Silence.

 Storytelling

 Individual check-ins

 Reading the mission statement or saying out loud what our intention is.
Our group can work more on this list of ideas for exercises to help participants connect with each other and to feel included. Different ways to communicate the Heart and Soul ideas. Russian Doll analogy – layers….

Research done by Linda Fels:

The Sandpoint, Idaho group has this mission statement: We educate, facilitate and celebrate our community’s relationship with change.

They had 2 sets of minutes online - they end each meeting with a 20-minute meditation and seem to concentrate on community celebration events.

The Portland, Oregon group stated this: Looking at the inner transition that we will also need to look at as we try and cope with the challengers ahead. Also looking at group dynamics and how such things as celebration, ritual and art inform the process of transition and the future that we are looking to create.

I found the most information on the Totnes, England site. Their last posted minutes are from April 2008 but their calendar shows H&S events continuing. The main work right now is on an Energy Descent Action Plan and on Joanna Macy’s workshop “The Work That Reconnects”. They listed the roles and functions of their Heart & Soul Group as: sharing, respect, deepening, silence, listening, experiential, becoming the change, not knowing in face of uncertainty, creating conditions for healing eldership, and rejoicing.

Here is an excerpt from their site:
Many believe that transforming our world will mean a deep change of heart and mind, as the transition to sustainability goes far beyond the immediate practical tasks. Themes that have already emerged include:
 bringing psychological awareness and understanding to our view of
self, community and the natural world;
 reconnecting with nature;
 expressing how it feels to be alive and engaged at such an uncertain
and critical time;
 creating community celebrations;
 Learning and sharing skills in communication, group process,
interpersonal dynamics, resolving conflict etc. which are needed
everywhere in the Transition movement!
 Expanding our capacity for presence, stillness, joy, creativity,
empowerment, love, and aliveness; developing the personal and group
skills needed to create an inclusive, empowered and positive future
for our world.

Heather K added notes: Co-creating, Celebrating, Recovering from and transforming grief; Joining together with allowing; Caring for the Earth and each other, sharing what we have and who we are.

***********************************************************
Morgan and I never found a time when we could both be together, so our Mission/Vision has not yet been created. Please bring ideas on Thursday!
Blessings,
Meredith
Comment by Heather K on November 4, 2009 at 1:45pm
Summary of Heart & Soul section of Transition Handbook
by Rob Hopkins at

http://transitionwhatcom.ning.com/forum/attachment/download?id=2723460%3AUploadedFi38%3A10068

Thanks David for the post & Cindy for the summary:

cross posted from below:
Comment by David MacLeod from Nov 5 event page:

For those who've not yet read the Transition Handbook by Rob Hopkins, I'm uploading a summary of the Heart and Soul section of this book that was put together by Cindi Landreth. It's in PDF format, and can be found at this link:

http://transitionwhatcom.ning.com/forum/attachment/download?id=2723...
Comment by Cindi Landreth on November 2, 2009 at 2:10pm
Hi Everyone

The following is an email I got from a fellow 'Training for Transition' class (training to teach the transition model). Sarah is being interviewed about what it is like to wake up to what is going on in the world. I reviewed it again this weekend and I thought you all might like to watch it. It is about 28 minutes long. Enjoy!

From Sarah:

Last fall I taped a show on eco-anxiety and Waking Up Syndrome for Peak Moment TV. It’s up now!
You can see it by clicking there on the name or here’s the URL you can copy and paste into your browser. http://www.wordpress.peakmoment.tv/conversations/?p=339
Peak Moment has wonderful shows and I am very excited to have been interviewed by Janaia and Robyn.
Please forward it to any one you think would be interested.
Cheers,
Sarah
Comment by Linda J Fels on October 13, 2009 at 3:18pm
As requested at our last meeting, I've been researching what Heart & Soul Groups in other Transition Initiatives have been doing. I looked at the web sites for all 42 initiatives listed for the US. Most do NOT have a Heart & Soul Group. A few were looking for volunteers to start one but only a couple, who did have a group, have much info.

The Sandpoint, Idaho group has this mission statement: We educate, facilitate and celebrate our community’s relationship with change. They had 2 sets of minutes online - they end each meeting with a 20 minute meditation and seem to concentrate on community celebration events.

The Portland, Oregon group stated this: Looking at the inner transition that we will also need to look at as we try and cope with the challengers ahead. Also looking at group dynamics and how such things as celebration, ritual and art inform the process of transition and the future that we are looking to create.

I found the most information on the Totnes, England site. Their last posted minutes are from April 2008 but their calendar shows H&S events continuing. The main work right now is on an Energy Descent Action Plan and on Joanna Macy’s workshop “The Work That Reconnects”. They listed the roles and functions of their Heart & Soul Group as: sharing, respect, deepening, silence, listening, experiential, becoming the change, not knowing in face of uncertainty, creating conditions for healing eldership, and rejoicing.

Here is an excerpt from their site:

Many believe that transforming our world will mean a deep change of heart and mind, as the transition to sustainability goes far beyond the immediate practical tasks. Themes that have already emerged include:
> bringing psychological awareness and understanding to our view of
self, community and the natural world;
> reconnecting with nature;
> expressing how it feels to be alive and engaged at such an uncertain
and critical time;
> creating community celebrations;
> learning and sharing skills in communication, group process,
interpersonal dynamics, resolving conflict etc. which are needed
everywhere in the Transition movement!
> expanding our capacity for presence, stillness, joy, creativity,
empowerment, love, aliveness; developing the personal and group
skills needed to create an inclusive, empowered and positive future
for our world.

That’s it for now.
Comment by Linda J Fels on September 7, 2009 at 8:02pm
Dear Heart & Soul enthusiasts. I've been working on the economic sustainability tool I learned at a conference in June (Common Security Clubs - CSC). Getting ready to offer it come October hopefully. Today I came across an article that so fits into what we were discussing at Cindi's last week, that I wanted to share it. It is part of a homework assignment for the CSC. It is titled "The Waking Up Syndrome" and the link is http://tinyurl.com/25r6bw.

As for our next meeting, I emailed Heather K about using her place but she must still be camping. Once we know if she wants to host, I'm willing to post date choices on Doodle.com.
Comment by Cindi Landreth on August 30, 2009 at 11:17pm
Hi Everyone
We just held our first Heart and Soul focus group meeting on my garden patio! The agenda was short and sweet. We shared our backgrounds and the communities we are involved with; what is in our hearts that brought us to the meeting; what heart and soul work is in the context of the transition movement; and what we would like to see come forward as the Heart and Soul focus group for Transition Whatcom.

We agreed that the Heart and Soul group might look something like this:

1. Support for ideas to help keep moving forward with H & S issues
2. Nourishment for each other - we all need support
3. An opportunity to practice strategies and excercises (some in the Handbook, some from our vast amount of experiences) - it's a chance to share the vast amount of talent in the group
4. Be available for Transition Initiatives that are wanting to do H & S work and need someone with some expertise to come and share ideas and experiences
5. Have fun and share how to have fun doing this work
6. Create a vision of where we want to go- in our communities, in our Transition Initiatives and in our own lives. Practice 'envisioning into the future' exercises to offer new TIs in Whatcom and for TW events - help paint a picture of the future so enticing that people feel instinctively drawn to it!

"Vision without action is merely a dream; action without vision just passes the time; vision with action can change the world." Joel Barker

7. Help establish Transition Initiatives with ways to strengthen their identity as a community
8. Focus on empowering the heart of the work, the heart of communities and the hearts of the people
9. Communicate the message that 'you are not alone'; we are all in this together
10. This group is open and ever expanding

It was also suggested that there may be existing organizations in a Transition Initiative's neighborhood that are already doing Heart and Soul work - like some spritual centers. Perhaps this Heart and Soul focus group could encourage those groups to get involved with their local Transition Initiatives.

This is a chance to re-invent, re-think and re-build the world around us! Holy muckers! Let's make it a great adventure and have fun doing it!

We agreed to meet monthly and the next meeting is being arranged. A notice and invitation will be found here (along with directions). Meredith has offered to create a contact list for those attending. I know there are many of you that wanted to attend but couldn't. If you would like to be included on this list, please let her know either through this thread or her profile page (include name, phone number and email address).

If you plan on attending the next meeting, please have read the Heart section of The Transitiion Handbook. We all want to be working together with the same goal in our hearts and that chapter frames it pretty well.

I had a great time tonight and say 'thank you' to all of you that were willing to surrender your Sunday evening to explore this next great adventure with me! I hope you can join us for the next meeting.
Comment by Heather K on August 27, 2009 at 4:09pm
"Working Together" and "Reaching Out" and "Into Community" - are writings by sustainable living & permaculture designer, H.C. Flores, from Chapters 11, 10 & 9 in the book :"Food Not Lawns - How to Turn Your Yard into a Garden & Your Neighborhood into a Community" are another wonderful reading source for working together with our hearts & souls. Library has two copies & a few of us would like to bring her up to B'ham as a speaker for either a community seed-swap event, or for a community wide 'Intro to Permaculture" event. The message is much more than about planting food, its about transforming & transitioning our local communities. Great resource book and recommended reading! She has a couple websites. Let us know if anyone else has discovered the passion this author has for creating communities transitioning in response to the tri-events of globel warming, peak oil, and financial shifts by learning all the things we can do in our own walk & with the power of working together.
 

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