Friday, May 29 – a room full of listening
40 UDM people, none of whom knew all of whom before we began, finished an intense day of listening in the President’s Dining Room by walking across campus to Lansing Reilly, the Jesuit residence, for some way above ordinary things to eat, plus very good IPA’s, Australian wine, and iced water or soda. Lots of fatigue in that parlor space and lots of kinship. Listening-generated affection and lots of ideas about the creativity of this process — i.e., using hospitality to gather employees from all sides of the university and inviting story listening to weave a fabric of 40 people which had not existed across those specific 40 people before. More to come I think.
This morning after a good long sleep, an idea for today’s post caught my attention. “Make it short. Make it deep. Make it fit this Friday for the few people who shared this university process and the many people who work at weaving human fabric across the world.” That said, this once, I also want to dedicate the poem to the 40 people who have been on my mind a lot these last days.
Have a blest weekend.
john sj
p.s. I’m heading to Pine Ridge SD Sunday for a week with soul friends there. I’ll probably post from there once or twice. Back June 7.
Today’s Post
Enough
Enough. These few words are enough.
If not these words, this breath.
If not this breath, this sitting here.
This opening to the life
we have refused
again and again
until now.
David Whyte, Where Many Rivers Meet