: collection of quotes and thoughts, or perhaps something that does
: allow a theme or a pattern to emerge...
“All of the past is the beginning of the beginning; all that the human mind has accomplished is but the dream before the awakening.” - H.G. Wells
Notice that the natural tendency of creative tension is to resolve itself. It’s as if you stretched a rubber band between one hand, representing vision, and the other, representing current reality. Were you to do this, you would feel the tension between them. You would also be aware of the energy stored in the stretched rubber band––energy that tries to pull your hands together. In other words, the tension wants to resolve itself. In the same way, creative tension is a force that tries to bring your current reality into alignment with your vision. If we develop the discipline of focusing our attention on the results we most want while simultaneously telling the truth about current reality (without trying to quick fix it), then the natural tendency of this structure is to resolve by current reality changing over time to meet the vision. Cultivating and maintaining creative tension is the central discipline of the outcome-creating life stance. It is the engine that fuels sustained growth. Leaders become masterful at cultivating it because they have learned that this discrepancy is not the enemy, but a friendly and powerful force for change.
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Leadership development is long-term because systems do not change quickly–especially our systems of thinking. No matter how much we are addicted to the quick fix, all of the available evidence tells us that change is hard and long–whether we are changing our organization or our consciousness.
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“The profound healing power of Nature. This healing power comes directly and naturally, without any artifice or complicated treatments, prayers, rituals or ceremonies.
All that is required is a commitment to come alone to Nature’s heart, to relax into the silence, and to trust. In living closely and alone with Nature for the first time, most people’s initial experiences are of radical slowing down... and of silence. Both are powerful healers. Modern technocratic culture is characterized by ever-increasing pressures for speed, and by almost continuous noise - inner and outer. In our contemporary cultural frenzy to boost our economies, we produce increasingly processed products; we consume increasingly greater quantities of these goods and energy, hoping to fill the gnawing void within we fear to meet. As we feed this growing industrial/technocr
Consider how many millions of years it has taken for our current interconnected web of body, mind
and emotions to evolve. And consider what kind of environment supported this evolution, and coevolved with us. The environments were natural ones, where organic rhythms of day/night, moon cycle, solar cycle, constellation cycles were part of us; and we were part of them. Trees, flowers, streams, lakes, ocean shorelines, mountains, rocks, sky, clouds - all of these elements of Nature have been companions in our journey into our contemporary embodiment, and influenced our growth. Now, in a few generations, we have leapt into incredibly new processed environments. Plastics, millions of new chemical compounds, air-conditioned air, fluorescent lighting, artificial food, powerful drugs, glass/steel/
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The Boatman (A Sufi Story from the Middle East )
A scholar asked a boatman to row him across the river. The journey was long and slow. The scholar was bored. “Boatman,” he called out, “Let’s have a conversation.” Suggesting a topic of special interest to himself, he asked, “Have you ever studied phonetics or grammar?”
“No,” said the boatman, “I’ve no use for those tools.”
“Too bad,” said the scholar, “You’ve wasted half your life. It’s useful to know the rules.”
Later, as the rickety boat crashed into a rock in the middle of the river, the boatman turned to the scholar and said, “Pardon my humble mind that to you must seem dim, but, wise man, tell me, have you ever learned to swim?”
“No,” said the scholar, “I’ve never learned. I’ve immersed myself in thinking.”
“In that case,” said the boatman, “you’ve wasted all your life. Alas, the boat is sinking.”
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A sunny week to you all, inside and out.
:: From The Four Corners
:: This is a new section of the newsletter, featuring news, ideas,
:: moments of inspiration of something someone somewhere is doing
:: that is making a difference in the world.
This spring, the B.C. government announced North America’s first “revenue neutral” carbon tax. In its first year it includes a $100 “Climate Action Dividend” cheque for every British Columbian, with extra for low-income families. That’s $440 million and the cheques are in the mail. The question remains, what will you do with your $100? This site is intended to showcase many B.C.-based climate action projects to which one can contribute.
http://contest.
:: Simon’s Reflections newsletter is published on a
:: bi-weekly basis and contains writings that touch
:: the heart, provoke the mind, and inspire action.
:: And I do welcome your thoughts and comments.
Simon
