I've been reading _The Lost German Slave Girl_. There is a part that describes the scene around a ship coming in with immigrants - it was a common exploitative practice to ship people across the ocean in return for indentured servitude on the other end. Read the book for a great look into the laws around slavery, but I am going off on a tangent here.
The scene is described as bustling. All sorts of people are interested in buying the labor of another human being for a cheap price... at first that seemed so strange to me. Imagine a boat pulls up to a major harbor like Boston or Philly or NY and a sign goes up - "Get yer indentured servants here!" Who would show up?
But we live in luxurious times - our indentured servants come in the form of oil-burning machines. The price we pay for raping the earth of resources instead of using human labor is only now starting to dawn on us... despite the fact that we have known most of this before we even started using oil... The slavery that oil represents is not as visible - the threat of rebellion and retaliation is not as immediate as within our own household.
And it's all about more. And all that more is a one-way street - consume, with no return to the source, no return to the earth our mother. (Check out a great short called the Story of Stuff http://www.storyofstuff.com/index.html ).
And it's all not new - humans have always wanted more, better, faster, harder, prettier, more fertile, more productive... We used to live simpler lives because we couldn't have more - given a chance to have more, we want more.
The big difference is that now we are so able to take, we are taking more than the earth can give. Now to save our lives we have to take less, give more. Maybe it's also a way to save our souls... cuz we collectively have sold our souls for stuff, convenience of stuff, stuff to put stuff in, stuff that moves stuff, stuff that makes more stuff, stuff to eat, stuff to sit on, stuff to put on other stuff.............. We are drowning in landfill even as we want that new LCD TV with surround sound.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Saturday, August 11, 2007
The Sage appears stupid
There is a teaching in the Tao Te Ching that says "the Sage appears stupid."
On the surface, a wise person appears simple, attracts little public attention, worries little about what others think of his/her presentation. But sound the depth of his/her stillness and you find that he has resonances and overtones that the average person does not.
Cheng Man-Ching, taichi master, described a teacher like a bell: hit it with a small pebble and you get a small sound; hit it with a log and you get a big sound. If you don't even hit the bell, you may not even know the profundity you miss: thus the sage who appears stupid.
How to discern those with true wisdom from those who simply affect lightness of being? Listen deeply for the other's listening. Feel for their stillness of mind. For it is listening and receptivity which sound a teacher's bell. Everyone is a teacher if we are willing to learn; it just happens some bells are more resonant and helpful to us than others!
We cultivate a resonant bell by investing time and energy in our own stillness of mind. In the silence between thoughts comes knowledge - knowledge is an awakening rather than a learning. In an awake state we see more clearly and have more insight, intuition and information. With these tools we see farther into the horizon, make better choices, define clearer boundaries, organize thoughts better, become more stable in the face of strong emotion or stress. We have our own answers within: we simply need to know how to seek them and live them.
On the surface, a wise person appears simple, attracts little public attention, worries little about what others think of his/her presentation. But sound the depth of his/her stillness and you find that he has resonances and overtones that the average person does not.
Cheng Man-Ching, taichi master, described a teacher like a bell: hit it with a small pebble and you get a small sound; hit it with a log and you get a big sound. If you don't even hit the bell, you may not even know the profundity you miss: thus the sage who appears stupid.
How to discern those with true wisdom from those who simply affect lightness of being? Listen deeply for the other's listening. Feel for their stillness of mind. For it is listening and receptivity which sound a teacher's bell. Everyone is a teacher if we are willing to learn; it just happens some bells are more resonant and helpful to us than others!
We cultivate a resonant bell by investing time and energy in our own stillness of mind. In the silence between thoughts comes knowledge - knowledge is an awakening rather than a learning. In an awake state we see more clearly and have more insight, intuition and information. With these tools we see farther into the horizon, make better choices, define clearer boundaries, organize thoughts better, become more stable in the face of strong emotion or stress. We have our own answers within: we simply need to know how to seek them and live them.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Leadership in your life
I have been reading John Carver on Board leadership and I realize that his message is easily transferrable to the individual.
The difference between leadership and management is that leadership creates the vision of what is to be, and determines general principles of how to get there and how not to get there. Management (staff) react to that vision by translating the vision into reality, managing the details of functioning in the world.
Most Boards don't spend a lot of time on their vision and end up doing staff work.
But it turns out that most people also don't create a vision and purpose for their lives and end up reacting to the twists and turns of fate rather than riding them. Basically getting caught up in each tree as an obstacle or a goal and losing sight of the forest and the lay of the land. Forgetting what you really want by getting lost in daily busy-ness.
Carver talks about creating a statement that answers "What is reason for this Board/organization's existence?" This question is broken down into three parts: 1. for what benefit to the world is the organization created, 2. who is the intended beneficiary (who do we serve), and 3. what cost is involved (money, but really all resources).
When translated to the individual, the big question is "Who am I?" Seems like a difficult question that many have grappled with. But let's get practical: 1. what do I do that is of benefit to the world?, 2. who benefits from what I do, who I am? and 3. what does it cost to maintain me - money, other people's love and affection, living space, etc.
What is my usefulness. I think answering that question is a very empowering and powerful exercise. Can I work on maximizing my positive impact on the world, leave everywhere and everyone better than where I found them? Can I do more meaningful and useful work? Can I be more loving and available to others?
What is my impact on my environment and on others. This is a realistic question: am I needy and a drag on those around me? Do I require a lot to live happily? Do I need a lot of space to live? Can I minimize the negative impact on the world, take less resources to be happy and satisfied?
It turns out that happiness lies in giving more than you take... and true leadership is about taking charge of your own happiness.
The difference between leadership and management is that leadership creates the vision of what is to be, and determines general principles of how to get there and how not to get there. Management (staff) react to that vision by translating the vision into reality, managing the details of functioning in the world.
Most Boards don't spend a lot of time on their vision and end up doing staff work.
But it turns out that most people also don't create a vision and purpose for their lives and end up reacting to the twists and turns of fate rather than riding them. Basically getting caught up in each tree as an obstacle or a goal and losing sight of the forest and the lay of the land. Forgetting what you really want by getting lost in daily busy-ness.
Carver talks about creating a statement that answers "What is reason for this Board/organization's existence?" This question is broken down into three parts: 1. for what benefit to the world is the organization created, 2. who is the intended beneficiary (who do we serve), and 3. what cost is involved (money, but really all resources).
When translated to the individual, the big question is "Who am I?" Seems like a difficult question that many have grappled with. But let's get practical: 1. what do I do that is of benefit to the world?, 2. who benefits from what I do, who I am? and 3. what does it cost to maintain me - money, other people's love and affection, living space, etc.
What is my usefulness. I think answering that question is a very empowering and powerful exercise. Can I work on maximizing my positive impact on the world, leave everywhere and everyone better than where I found them? Can I do more meaningful and useful work? Can I be more loving and available to others?
What is my impact on my environment and on others. This is a realistic question: am I needy and a drag on those around me? Do I require a lot to live happily? Do I need a lot of space to live? Can I minimize the negative impact on the world, take less resources to be happy and satisfied?
It turns out that happiness lies in giving more than you take... and true leadership is about taking charge of your own happiness.
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