Being a Contemporary Shambhala Warrior

The other night I had the opportunity to hear a talk by Bill McKibben for maybe the third or fourth time. This man is one of my heroes, a true Shambhala Warrior. He stays awake and engaged with compassion and fearlessness even in the face of all he knows and has seen in the world. He never gives up or gives in. He doesn't pull any punches in his articulation of the gravity of our global situation, yet he keeps his heart wide open and he wears his love for all of creation on his sleeve. I know he must have his moments when he wants to throw in the towel, but he's been doing what he does for years with, thankfully, no end in sight. I think this is because he embodies what I believe are three essential qualities:
Wakefulness: the ability to be present to what is happening in the world around you
Groundedness: the ability to hold that wakefulness in such a way that you don't get lost in it or consumed by it (often through a spiritual practice), and
Action or service: the ability to creatively respond to 1 & 2.

Take some time to explore those qualities within your own life, as I will. Leave comments and share what comes up for you. Also, take a look at Bill's work and how to get involved at:
350.org
billmckibben.com

Losing My Head

One of the practices I use for seeking spiritual guidance or discernment is shamanic journeying. I've been trained in this technique by both Dream Change and The Foundation of Shamanic Studies. With the aid of drums and rattles, I open myself up to the possibilities of other realms besides my own limited ego. The result is always a story:

I traveled to the upper world in the rising smoke of a campfire. I kept getting stalled and couldn't progress. Self-judgments kept coming at me and I would grab them: you're not worthy, you have nothing to give, it's too late, no one wants you, and on and on. I would grab them and drop them into the fire far below, and each time I became more weightless until I was effortlessly ascending. I came to a place where I just floated for awhile.

 I asked for a helper or teacher to come to me. The first thing that came was a lion that later shifted into a mountain lion. There was also an old woman. More self-judgments came that I taunted the lion with, basically saying I'm not worthy, you're wasting your time. The lion promptly ate me and traveled out of the floating place to the top of a mountain, where he just as promptly shat me out.

I again asked for a teacher and an eagle soared overhead. I found myself lamenting that I can't see what I'm supposed to do; I can't figure it out. The lion then bit off my head and spat it out, and I "watched" it roll down the mountain. So I just sat there for awhile, my headless self, with the mountain lion on one side, the old woman on the other, and the eagle soaring above. I realized I was looking over all the world without my head. My heart sometimes seemed to be beating with the drums: call-ing, call-ing, call-ing.

As the journey was ending, eagle flew down and stood in front of me. We gazed at each other for some time. Then I got the sense that he was going to grab my heart and fly away with it. Instead, as the drums started calling me back, he retrieved my head and I journeyed back home.

What Do You DO?

Last night I was at a fundraiser at a local eatery when a person I had just met asked me what I do. Oh, Lord, the little dance that goes on in my heart whenever I get that question! Will I get the wide-eyed, smiling, resonating nods or the deer in the headlights, oh-that's-nice blank stare? My husband says, tell them you're a poet. That will impress them. I told him that wasn't exactly a goal of mine but I have to say, I struggle with a gamut of feelings around this issue.

The reality is, what I DO doesn't fit into neatly definable sound bites like "I'm a doctor" or "I'm a teacher." And the reality also is, that's going to be true for anybody trying to forge a new path into our unknown future. It's both unsettling and exciting. It's unsettling because, in the old paradigm, the oh-that's-nice reaction can feel demoralizing and even demeaning. It's exciting because it's simply good information and an opportunity to engage more deeply. At the very least, it's a lesson in letting go of what others think as well as the temptation to put oneself in little boxes.

My husband likes to joke that I'm a prophet - and you know what they do to prophets. They're ostracized, vilified, and sometimes crucified. Oh boy. While those are strong words, at times I feel some measure of all of them, even from my own self-talk. You know. "That's crazy." "That's impossible." "Who do you think you are?"

And I think that's one of the keys - knowing who you are and doing that. Not proselytizing, not apologising. I really believe in the BeingChange work even though it's messy and meandering. It feels right and that's good enough for me.

Life As Pilgrimage

Bottom line: I'm finding living within our current paradigm of injustice, unsustainability, and outright insanity increasingly excruciating. My heart breaks a little more each day as I witness to the suffering and violence we visit on each other and our Mother Earth.


I ask myself every day: How can I unplug? How can I live according to my vision and values, as well as creatively midwife a new paradigm, when there are such strong forces wanting me to keep towing the line? This is a very big question with no easy answers.

So I frame my life journey as a pilgrimage: each day, each step, each choice is dedicated to living these questions. Every day, I become more aware of the radical changes that are required of me and I relish the challenge and the opportunity for boundless creativity regarding these changes. I'm also in good company. There's amazing stuff going on out there with MILLIONS of people asking these same questions, people who have the courage and compassion to say no to what keeps us small and disempowered while saying yes to what calls to us most deeply.

I'd like to share with you one such person. Her name is Lynne Twist. www.soulofmoney.org
ONE of the ways Lynne is challenging the status quo is through shifting how we think about money from a paradigm of scarcity to one of sufficiency. The implications of such a shift are profound. I highly recommend her book The Soul of Money. It's a beautiful example of what's possible and empowering.

I'm so grateful to be on this journey called life, this mysterious spiritual pilgrimage. Every day I ask Pachamama: What can I do for you today? It helps me unplug. It helps me remember who I am. It helps give me courage and compassion for the road ahead.

A New Focus For This Blog

In my garden

Dear friends of BeingChange,

I have been playing with a couple of options for sending people on my email list periodic newsletters filled with BeingChange news, up-coming events and resources. I have decided to try a free service called Comm100 and will begin crafting the first e-news shortly. You can subscribe through the form provided in this blog or on the web site.

Therefore, I have decided to use this blog as a container for the telling of my personal story of being in this transition time and my visions for the future. I would love to create a conversation with you all, so please leave your comments. Share your stories. Stay tuned. The next post will be along soon!

Personal Guidelines for the Great Turning

From www.joannamacy.net

To good not to pass on!

Come from Gratitude
To be alive in this beautiful, self-organizing universe--to participate in the dance of life with senses to perceive it, lungs that breathe it, organs that draw nourishment from it--is a wonder beyond words. Gratitude for the gift of life is the primary wellspring of all religions, the hallmark of the mystic, the source of all true art. Furthermore, it is a privilege to be alive in this time when we can choose to take part in the self-healing of our world.

Don't be Afraid of the Dark
This is a dark time, filled with suffering and uncertainty. Like living cells in a larger body, it is natural that we feel the trauma of our world. So don't be afraid of the anguish you feel, or the anger or fear, for these responses arise from the depth of your caring and the truth of your interconnectedness with all beings. To suffer with is the literal meaning of compassion.

Dare to Vision
Out of this darkness a new world can arise, not to be constructed by our minds so much as to emerge from our dreams. Even though we cannot see clearly how it's going to turn out, we are still called to let the future into our imagination. We will never be able to build what we have not first cherished in our hearts.

Roll up your Sleeves
Many people don't get involved in the Great Turning because there are so many different issues, which seem to compete with each other. Shall I save the whales or help battered children? The truth is that all aspects of the current crisis reflect the same mistake, setting ourselves apart and using others for our gain. So to heal one aspect helps the others to heal as well. Just find what you love to work on and take joy in that. Never try to do it alone. Link up with others; you'll spark each others' ideas and sustain each others' energy.

Act your Age
Since every particle in your body goes back to the first flaring forth of space and time, you're really as old as the universe. So when you are lobbying at your congressperson's office, or visiting your local utility, or testifying at a hearing on nuclear waste, or standing up to protect an old grove of redwoods, you are doing that not out of some personal whim, but in the full authority of your 15 billions years.

A Circle of Friends

Recently, my family went through a crazy, stressful experience. We were having to make a very difficult decision in a very short time. By the end of a week of this, we no longer knew if we were thinking straight and whether or not we were capable of discerning the best way forward.

We called together a group of four couples, very close friends, and asked that they hear our story and feed back what they heard from their different perspectives. We were very open and honest with details that we certainly wouldn't share with just anyone. But there was a precious level of trust and safety in that gathering that moves me no measure.

This is circling at its best. The depth of both sharing and listening empowered everyone in that room to gain in wisdom, creativity, and solidarity. That's the magic of the circle - all participants benefit in ways that are most meaningful to them.

I encourage anyone who is going through a difficult or overwhelming situation to call a circle of trusted friends and open yourself up to asking for help out of those stuck places. And let me know what happens - send me your story.

Jan Phillips

I have the wonderful opportunity to bring Jan Phillips - an amazing visionary, author, artist, and teacher, to Ithaca, New York to lead a seminar during the weekend of October 23rd (Friday evening through Sunday noon.) This seminar is entitled "Facilitator Training - Turning Your Life into a Living" and is an intensive, hands-on small-group weekend seminar for people who are ready to harvest the wisdom of their life experiences and share what they have learned with others. It prepares you to become a facilitator of whatever kind of groups you care to facilitate, with a thorough exploration of content development, finding and reaching your audience, clarifying your mission and message, and using the media to promote your work. (While this seminar is full of practical tools, her approach is holistic and spiritually grounded. It's not just about marketing! Jan shows people how to access their wisdom, activate their creativity, and communicate with clarity and compassion.) She will empower us in:

• how to transform your knowledge and skills into a teachable format
• what to call your workshop/training
• how to describe it in 2-3 paragraphs
• what to say in your publicity so people know what’s in it for them
• how much you should charge
• how to find the people who are looking for you
• where, when, and how to advertise
• how to get free publicity and make the most of it

The cost would be around $525 depending on what food will be provided. You will also receive a couple of her books and a CD of head shots to use in your PR materials.
See her web site at www.janphillips.com
It should be a lot of fun. Space is limited to only SIX people and I'm one of them, so if you're interested let me know soon.

The Five Gifts of Uncertainty

Joanna Macy


At the next BeingChange Circle, on June 11th, I will be showing the short video of Joanna Macy's talk at the 2009 Bioneers conference. You can see it on the home page of her web site at www.joannamacy.net.

After viewing the film, we will call the circle and share what comes up for us around her topic: "The Five Gifts of Uncertainty." Perhaps you'd like to call your own circle and send me your responses to this moving and timely message. Here's a sneak preview of the five gifts:

The gift of the present moment
The gift of fresh recognition of the power of intention
The gift of befriending our pain
The gift of our solidarity with all our relations
The gift of an immensity of time

Joanna is truly a remarkable woman. Her compassion and energy are boundless. I hope you enjoy the video! An opportunity to be in her presence, even a virtual presence, is not to be missed.

What is "The Great Turning?"

....or the Great Work, The Shift, Conscious Evolution, Transition....I decided to post a few quotes to try to convey the essence of these concepts. I hope you will take it upon yourself to dig deeper. This is the essential spiritual path of our times:

David Korten: The term “The Great Turning” has come into widespread use to describe the awakening of a higher level of human consciousness and a human turn from an era of violence against people and nature to a new era of peace, justice and environmental restoration. Most people are not aware that this awakening is underway, because positive change rarely reaches the level of front page - or even back-page - news!

Joanna Macy: The most remarkable feature of this historical moment on Earth is not that we are on the way to destroying the world-we've actually been on the way for quite a while. It is that we are beginning to wake up, as from a millennia-long sleep, to a whole new relationship to our world, to ourselves and each other.

Bill Plotkin Will the twenty-first century turn out to be the Great Ending or the Great Turning? It’s up to us…you and me and all others who are waking up to the extraordinary challenge, opportunity, and imperative before us.

Thomas Berry: We might summarize our present human situation by the simple statement: that in the 20th century, the glory of the human has become the desolation of the Earth and now the desolation of the Earth is becoming the destiny of the human. From here on, the primary judgment of all human institutions, professions, programs and activities will be determined by the extent to which they inhibit, ignore, or foster a mutually enhancing human – Earth relationship.

Barbara Marx Hubbard: Those of us alive today are the first generation born with the choice of learning conscious, ethical evolution, or suffering devolution and the destruction of our life-support systems with unimaginably more tragedy than the world has yet experienced. We are the generation of the gap between “here”—a highly technological, over-populating, polluting, brilliant species on the brink of social and environmental chaos, and “there”—a compassionate, spiritually awakened humanity, capable of transcending the limits of our past human existence and moving toward the unknown. We do not have much time. Within the next 30 to 50 years, we must change our fundamental behavior to be more in alignment with our natural systems and our visions of a positive future. Never before has the human species had to change this quickly in order to survive.

Duane Elgin: The world is moving into a new era where the human community must work together if we are to realize a future of sustainable prosperity. This transition represents both a great challenge and an extraordinary opportunity. We are being called to make a shift toward green lifestyles, supported by a mature democracy, and guided by the collective wisdom of science and spirituality.

BeingChange: Not Just For Women

You may have noticed, if you've been visiting this blog, that I've recently dropped the word "women" from "Women Weaving the Great Turning Through Circles, Art, & Story." While there will continue to be women-only circles and events, and special emphasis on empowering women's vision and voice, it truly didn't make any sense to exclude the invaluable contributions of weaving men. So, men of heart and soul, and spirit; men who love our Mother Earth and who care about the future generations: Welcome! I look forward to hearing your stories.

The Great Turning as a Hero's Journey

In the film about these transition times entitled “What a Way to Go,” Derrick Jensen tells the following story. During times of war, the native dog soldiers of the southwest would plant a stake, called a picket pin, in the battlefield and tie themselves to it. They were making a visual and visceral statement that they were taking a stand, that retreat was not an option, and that they would give their all – even in the face of death.

The film also explores how, even as we are awakening to the challenge of our global situation, there are powerful forces attempting to lull us back to sleep.

In the book “Sacred Demise,” by Carolyn Baker, Peter Senge says: “The power of creative tension results from seeing clearly where we want to be, our vision, and telling the truth about where we are, our current reality.” I would add the tension of staying awake – even in the face of death, both real and metaphorical.

All of this adds up to what I see as a spectrum, a very loopy, non-linear spectrum. On one end we are asleep or being lulled back to sleep. On the other end we are consciously and courageously planting our picket pins by confronting fears and limitations, by taking stands, and by envisioning possibilities.

The creative tensions are our thresholds. Which way are we going to choose in any day, in any moment, in any situation?

Our navigation of this spectrum, of these tensions, is what I have compared to the archetypal “hero’s journey.” The hero’s journey is a perfect template for what the initiation of transition and of transformation requires of us. We hear a call and we either refuse the call – go back to sleep - or step over that threshold into the dark mucky-muck of the unknown and search for that Grail, planting our picket pins over and over along the way, and bringing back what we learn as a gift to our people.

What lulls you back to sleep? Where are you along the spectrum of the hero’s journey in the context of the Great Turning? What is calling you? What picket pin would represent your next best response to that call? What would the Grail look like? Who will you meet along the way?

If you have a story, song, poem, or what have you, that speaks to these questions, please send them to me. I may post them to the BeingChange web site and they may become a part of the future anthology.

BeingChange - Some challenges and possibilites

BeingChange circles are really twofold: having circles and collecting stories about our experiences of being in transition and our visions for the future. These stories can be expressed in any artistic genre: poetry, essays, songs, dance, photography, and the like. So, the stories are the end, the goal, and the circles are the means. One of the outcomes will be a book - an anthology of our work together. The challenge is how to record the stories generated within the circle while, at the same time, maintaining the safety and spiritual grounding of the circle.

My answer is to be explicit. I'm looking for people who are passionate about wanting to help create a better world, who have something to say about the condition of our planet and the future for all beings, and who have the courage to stretch beyond their comfort zones. I'm looking for people who are excited about being part of a collection of powerful voices, and about being the change we wish to see in the world. While every effort will be made to co-create a safe and spiritually grounded space, these circles will be recorded AND stories will never be shared without permission and can remain anonymous if requested.

Are you one of these people? Would you like to contribute in some way? There will be options for wherever you are. Please email me, leave comments, suggestions, become part of the BeingChange network!

A Weaving Man

I'm excited about introducing you to a remarkable Weaving Man; thankfully one of many in our world. His name is Bill Plotkin and he is the founder of Animas Institute. Their focus is on "nature-based initiation" designed to empower a "foundational shift that elicits each person's most creative, soul-rooted response to our precious, critical moment in history." This is one of the highest quality, most desperately needed organizations I have come across. Please explore his web site. Read his books. Begin to grasp what it would be like to grow truly whole human beings in deep relationship with our world....

Wanderlust

 Communing with friend in Otavalo, Ecuador


I want to introduce you to two amazing women - Jan Phillips and Vijali Hamilton. (See the links page on my web for more about them.)  These women are visionaries, artists, and activists PLUS they've both taken extraordinary trips around the world doing their art while promoting peace and nurturing relationships with diverse peoples.

Hearing their stories, and others like them, makes me just about want to bolt out my door and hit the road!  Indeed, my dream is to finds ways to travel, to do circles, to collect stories, to listen to people's experiences, and to put it all together in ways that I might share it with you.  This would be nothing short of a pilgrimage for me - a sacred journey of communing with both place and people.

This world is so precious, there is so much to see and learn.  What stories would people in Latin American, or Africa, or the Middle East have to tell about The Great Turning?  How would they envision the future?  What insights would they have that we may not see from within our industrialized, consumeristic culture?  What art and beauty and community might be created?

This is no small undertaking, of course.  It will take some time to grapple with the logistics.  But my intention is to do everything in my power to find ways to fulfill this dream.  Any suggestions?  Please leave comments!

BeingChange - The Beginnings

Phebe at Morey, sacred Incan site in the Andes of Peru


BeingChange has been a long time in the making and has gone through many evolutions before settling into "Weaving the Great Turning Through Circles, Art, & Story."  Though I imagine the seeds were planted possibly before I was even born, it wasn't until I was in graduate school that they began to take root.  I attended Antioch University in Seattle, majoring in Whole Systems Design.  This unique program encourages students to explore a question or an issue systemically and to design a response that, when implemented, can embody real change.

Suffice it to say that I brought a big - a HUGE - how can I save the world-type question and it took years of letting go and listening to my heart before a discernible path emerged.  Often this was agonizing.  While I strongly sensed I was on the right track, I couldn't seem to "make anything of it."  This led to many moments of despair and self-doubt.  More recently, part of my despair was from my perception that, at fifty-plus years old, time was running out if I ever wanted to "make something of myself."  (More letting go....)

Looking back I can see that, of course, things were cooking.  I can see that when a person has a passion, then spirit is at work, and I need to trust that.  I learned that it's important to not get TOO far ahead of myself and miss the insights and opportunities that are presenting themselves all along the way.  Luckily, if anything, I'm persistent.  I kept plugging away.  I took trainings, read voraciously, led various events and workshops, involved myself in various issues, went on a vision quest and traveled to South America, spent hours in nature, developed an eclectic spiritual practice, and so on.

Eventually, it became more and more clear what made my heart truly hum AND it was still unclear how to put all the pieces together in a way that "made sense."  (Even more to let go of!)  What were the pieces?  ....the Great Turning, a new story, my love of indigenous peoples, wanderlust, spirit, nature, circles, poetry and writing...Eureka!  Now I'm getting somewhere!

Imagine: Gathering in circles, sharing stories, finding our voices, honoring our experiences, empowering each other on the journeys of our heart, envisioning a better world for our children and for all beings.  Imagine sharing ritual and ceremony to evoke our deepest imagination and creativity, and manifesting what emerges into a story, a poem, a dance, a song, a work of art.  Imagine weaving these works of art back into our world, into our psyche, and we begin turning....

The other piece of this puzzle is my crazy, unrelenting wanderlust.  I absolutely have to travel to learn about the world and to feed my soul.  This year I hope to travel by bicycle to points as yet unknown, doing circles and gathering stories along the way as well as spending deep time in wilderness.  Stay tuned.  I may occasionally need a couch and a shower!

All I know is I must follow all this and see where it leads.  Even as I still struggle with my fears and my uncertainties, it feels right.  It feels like home.

Being an Edgewalker

Phebe with Joanna Macy

"I believe in my heart that we are being called to be Edgewalkers: 

hospice workers to what is dying and midwives to what is waiting to be born."

From the BeingChange web site

Dear friends,

For me, being an "Edgewalker" is an intensely spiritual journey. My personal journey has been influenced by many things, for example: training in systems thinking that explores patterns and processes and interconnections; a deep relationship with our Earth and our brother and sister beings; an extensive exploration into indigenous wisdom and traditions; a fascination with the stories that are emerging from both the realms of science and spirit about the nature of our unfolding universe, and a relentless calling to search for ways to dedicate my life to the service of the Great Turning.

I feel as if I don't belong in the worldview of what Joanna Macy calls "the industrial growth society."  While this stage of our evolution accomplished much, much more is being lost and much creative potential remains unrealized. Yet how do we step out of our cultural paradigm enough to see it holistically and objectively? Where do we find the vision to imagine and create other ways of being?

My response to this question has been to explore a variety of diverse cultures and worldviews as well as to examine the impacts of our culture on others. I have done this through study and research as well as through exposure to other cultures and perspectives both from within and outside of the United States. Continuing this process is a central part of my path and I hope to create BeingChange circles wherever I go. I dream of making BeingChange a container to deeply explore the issues of discerning and visioning and co-creating. We have the power in us to steer the course for a future of peace, sustainability, equity and respect for all beings - what Joanna calls a life-sustaining civilization.

Stay tuned. I will elaborate on this dream in my next post.