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Heart and Soul Meeting 18 September 2007

Heart and Soul meeting 18 September 2007

To see the full list of past H&S events and meetings click here

The story from the latest gathering (sounds less boring than meeting notes?) on 18 Sept 07, and news of events coming up. Next meeting date – put it in your diary!!Tuesday 30 October 7.30pm. Hopefully round a fire somewhere outside.. otherwise at the office. Twenty of us met in the newly painted and now open TTT office on Fore street. It’s just big enough for the group, but we need to get the windows open. If you want to book the room for a transition related group call the office on 01803 867358. Several newcomers to the heart and soul meeting were present, and very welcome. Sylvia led us through raising some energy and sending it round the group.

The Work that Reconnects

Cliona gave a short talk on “The Work that Reconnects” – the work of Joanna Macy. This describes the work of the “Great Turning” – her term for transition.. We need to go from an Industrial Growth Society to a Life Sustaining Society – a shift as big as the agricultural or industrial revolutions – and this needs to happen fast! She includes 3 kinds of work in the Great Turning, all important·

Holding actions – saying NO to the destruction caused by industrial growth
· Creating new structures and systems – saying YES to the new
· The shift in consciousness needed to live in a different way – the WOW factor!

A Work That Reconnects workshop follows four stages

Gratitude – celebrating what we have, what we love
Honouring our pain for the world, opening to the depth of our feeling
Seeing with new eyes – once we really allow our feelings something shifts and we can see the world differently. Practices which help include seeing with perspectives beyond that of our world – of animals or plants, of future beings, of ancestors..
Going forth – taking the energy and commitment out into the world and our daily lives

We did a short visualisation on expanding our inner sense of identity from individual to group to TTT to TTs everywhere (now something like 200 groups are in touch about starting a transition project) to the million or so groups working for a better future worldwide. There was some discussion of these ideas.. that this is just one of many approaches included in the Heart and Soul part of TTT.. how essential it is not to be prescriptive about how people “should” engage.. that the work was originally a response to the threat of nuclear war, a different shape of global catastrophe to those we face now.. the importance Joanna Macy placed on going from inner work into action in the world.. the links between inner and outer transformation.. how important joy is in all this serious work of transition! Cliona and Rosie, and perhaps some others, will be offering some of the Work that Reconnects in the spring.

Fishbowl discussion of “Deepening – what is it and how do we do it?”

The last part of the evening was spent on a mini fishbowl discussion of some themes raised by Marianne Williamson – including the theme proposed for the discussion evening on 5 October, what is the deepening we need to develop to be effective in the transition process, and how do we do it? We set up 5 chairs in the centre of the room and had a discussion between those sitting in these chairs. In the fishbowl structure one chair is always empty – if you have something you want to contribute you can come in and sit on that chair. When the last chair is taken one person in the centre leaves. I found this a fascinating although short experiment – the movement of ideas and energy between the centre and the wider circle, and the intensifying and focusing effect of a holding group giving their attention to the discussion. If you have any feedback please let me know. Thanks to all who came.

Details of all events coming up are below.

Date of next meeting Tuesday 30 October 7,30pm. We’ll try to find a fireside venue, otherwise it’ll be at the office again. Heart and Soul Autumn Programme Summary – for details see the listings below.

Date / venue	Event	Venue / cost / contact
Monday 25 Sept	DVD of Marianne Williamson talk “Personal transformation, planetary transformation	Bogan House 7.0pm – 9.0 ish £3/2 contact Sophy
Friday 5 Oct	Deepening our inner capacity for Transition – fishbowl discussion of themes from Marianne’s talk	Bogan House7.0pm Donations contact Sophy
24 – 30 Sept	Quaker week	3 Ticklemore street
Thurs 27 Sept	Consciousness Café: Is the universe conscious? Jean Hardy	Barrelhouse 8.0pm Max
Sat 29 Sept	Healing day in Totnes. Ritual at 3pm with Sylvia	Vire Island. Contact Sylvia
Fri 19 Oct	Laughter Initiative Evening	Lee’s house 7.30pm Contact Lee
Mon 22 Oct	Prayer for the planet – interfaith evening. TTT event	St Johns. See main programme for info
Fri 26 Oct	This farming life	Methodist Hall 8.0pm £6/5
27 – 28 Oct	Working with Nature in Your Therapeutic Practice with Mark O’Connell	Cost: £150 Venue Harberton Village Hall.
Sunday 25 Nov	Earth Wisdom council	Carlos

Personal Transformation, Planetary Transformation

Next Monday 24 SeptemberShowing of the DVD of Marianne Williamson’s talk Bogan house, 7.0pm – 9.0pm Cost £3/£2 Please tell your friends, especially those who couldn’t get in when she spoke in July. We will purchase a copy of the DVD so you can borrow it if you can’t make this evening. This will be followed by a discussion on one of the core themes Marianne spoke about –

Deepening our inner capacity for Transition

What is this and how do we do it? A Fishbowl discussionFriday 5 October at Bogan House, 7.0pm One of the key areas Marianne talked about was the need for each of us to “deepen” – to expand our capacity for receiving spiritual energy, for understanding, for holding emotion. It will help if you have seen the Marianne Williamson talk but this is not essential. What has helped you to deepen your understanding of the need to act? To open you to feeling or responding to what you see happening to the earth, to people, in your community? If you are a therapist or healing practitioner you might like to think about how your discipline relates to this question of deepening.