[Announce] Interhelp Newsletter, Winter 2010
The Interhelp Network
update@interhelpnetwork.org
Wed, 06 Jan 2010 11:04:02 -0500
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Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"; format=flowed
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
A new Interhelp Newsletter has been posted at=20
http://www.interhelpnetwork.org/pdf/winter10.pdf.
See below for a simple text version.
Interhelp Newsletter, Winter 2010
Dear Interhelpers and Friends,
The 2009 Gathering of the Interhelp tribe in=20
November attracted 29 adults and 6 children=20
(yeah!) for a lively weekend. Thanks to Michael=20
Rice for submitting his evocative account of=20
=93being chosen=94 for our Saturday afternoon Council=20
of All Beings. Our =93being chosen=94 exercise=20
consisted of an internal journey, accompanied by=20
the steady rhythm of a heartbeat drum.
Next year=92s Gathering will be held on October=20
15-17, again at Woolman Hill in western Mass.=20
Mark your calendars! Another bit of Interhelp=20
news: Council member Judy Waldman from Maryland=20
returns to active participation. Welcome back, Judy
Joanna Macy returns to the Rowe Conference Center=20
for the weekend of May 7-9, and for the following week (www.rowecenter.org).
Below you will find reviews of two exciting new=20
books: A Paradise Built in Hell: The=20
Extraordinary Communities that Arise in Disaster=20
by Rebecca Solnit, and a personal favorite of=20
mine entitled Held in Love. Also, links to good stuff!
Submissions to this newsletter are always=20
welcome; deadline for the next issue is March first.
It=92s a good year to be in community. I=92m grateful=20
that all of you comprise a visionary and caring=20
community that holds me steadily. Let=92s keep in touch.
Paula Hendrick
<mailto:interhelpeditor@gmail.com>interhelpeditor@gmail.com
Links
Sarah Vesaki integrates Work that Reconnects=20
processes into her eco-chaplaincy work on coal=20
mining issues. For monthly reports of her work,=20
see www.ecochaplaincy.net/SVLetters.html.
Beth Sawin of the Sustainability Institute in=20
Vermont presented their new Climate Interactive=20
computer modeling system in Copenhagen. See=20
http://climateinteractive.wordpress.com/.
Joanna Macy spoke about =93the gifts of=20
uncertainty=94 at Bioneers 2009. Watch and be=20
heartened at http://vimeo.com/7914131.
Once again, Chris Johnstone has written a fine=20
editorial in the Great Turning Times (Dec. 2009=20
issue). http://www.greatturningtimes.org/current.asp .
Being Chosen (for the Council of All Beings)
by Michael Rice
I found myself uncharacteristically silent during=20
Saturday morning=92s Elm Dance. But I do know that=20
I was particularly grieving the destruction by=20
Mountain Top Removal of Kentucky mountaintops,=20
their trees, and the surrounding brooks. At some=20
point during the ensuing Milling, I felt =93chosen=94=20
by Appalachian Mountaintops =96 prematurely chosen,=20
for the Council of All Beings. I felt quite=20
dubious that I could enter a trance, going =93down=94=20
through a =93portal=94 for a formal Being Chosen, but=20
was relieved that I could perhaps ratify the=20
choice to which I had already submitted. And then=20
I chose a portal, a very precise spot on a slope=20
a house-width from the southeast corner of my=20
house =96 the place where I in fact plan to dig a=20
root cellar into that hillside. And then Joyce=92s=20
drumming began and I went down. The trance came=20
quickly. I slid past a mole (not chosen) and a=20
daylily bulb (not chosen). I wondered whether I=20
would see my mountaintop. And then, un-bidden, it=20
came! A raven presented itself and volunteered to=20
fly up and check on my mountaintop! Clearly, the=20
raven was choosing me. It claimed to be=20
visionary, that it could see the mountaintop, and=20
that it could warn of predators, of impending=20
doom. I was impatient, at this point, for the=20
drumming to stop. Yet there were to be other=20
experiences: I saw a fire, camp-fire style; I=20
flew around with the raven and saw what was going=20
on above ground; back below, I saw some trees; I=20
saw a clear brook =96 all were appealing =93beings=94=20
laying a claim to me, but none as definitively as=20
Raven itself. The clarity with which it claimed=20
me, chose me, could not be denied. I was waiting=20
with some boredom for the drumming to stop, or=20
change, to drum me back up through my portal; it finally did. My Raven had=
me!
Held in Love: Life Stories to Inspire Us Through Times of Change
Edited by Molly Young Brown and Carolyn Wilbur Treadway
Psychosynthesis Press, 2009
review by Paula Hendrick
For several weeks this fall for my morning=20
reading (sitting up in bed with the down=20
comforter wrapped around me) I turned to this=20
lovely and powerful new book. Each morning my=20
internal sense of connection and belonging was=20
touched and I relaxed a bit into the gifts and=20
challenges of the particular day, and of this particular moment on earth.
Over 100 stories, poems, and images tell of=20
contributors=92 experiences of connection with a=20
loving Source within and beyond themselves =96 in=20
times of hardship or unexpected grace, alone, in=20
nature, or with others. These writings and images=20
offer examples of the ways Love can guide and=20
sustain us through the challenges of The Great=20
Turning. Many of the contributors (including=20
editor Carolyn Treadway) were participants with=20
me at Seeds of the Future II with Joanna and Fran Macy in 2007.
My favorite of the blurbs is from Bill Plotkin:=20
=93We are each uniquely who we are by virtue of our=20
relationships to everything else, including to=20
the mysterious totality that holds everything.=20
Not only are we not alone, we are in an intimate=20
dance with all things, a dance that defines us=20
and supports us. In this wonderful collection,=20
Molly and Carolyn have gathered from a host of=20
colleagues poignant stories and poems describing=20
how people discover, often unexpectedly and=20
astonishingly, their full belonging to Earth,=20
Universe, Mystery, Community, or Self.=94
You can =93look inside=94 Held in Love at Amazon.com.=20
To order, contact Carolyn@GraceFullLife.com.
Disaster as a Social Change Agent
Book Review by Carol Harley
Ordinary people sometimes find themselves in dire=20
circumstances affecting an entire community. As=20
Rebecca Solnit points out in her wonderful new=20
book, A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary=20
Communities That Arise in Disaster, such crises=20
can provide openings for real political and social change.
I was held spellbound by Solnit=92s thoughtful=20
exploration of five major disasters, ranging from=20
the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 to the=20
flooding of New Orleans. She delves into human=20
responses to catastrophe and finds a common=20
thread among them: =93an emotion graver than=20
happiness, but deeply positive=94 often arises when=20
people are confronted with an intensely=20
challenging set of circumstances. This inner=20
response can be life-changing, as in the case of=20
young Dorothy Day. An earthquake survivor who=20
noticed that =93while the crisis lasted, people=20
loved each other,=94 Day ended up devoting much of=20
her life to tirelessly promoting the loving=20
community she knew was possible =96 because she had=20
experienced it firsthand when people=92s most=20
remarkable caring qualities manifested during the=20
disaster=92s immediate aftermath.
This book is so rich that it=92s tricky to tease=20
out just a few aspects to comment on in a brief=20
review. One compelling thing Solnit reveals is=20
also an aspect of the Work That Reconnects that=20
excites me: the recognition that through our=20
human respon se to severe crises, we can, and do,=20
enable transformation that might be seen as=20
catapulting us forward into our =93highest and=20
best=94 selves. I find myself wondering whether the=20
biggest disaster of all =96 climate disruption =96=20
may elicit the kind of evolutionary leap (on the=20
magnitude of a pole vault) necessary for the=20
whole of humanity to experience the shift in=20
consciousness needed for Earth healing. In this=20
precarious time of apocalyptic popular culture=20
such as the movie =932012,=94 I=92d like to share a=20
look at the seemingly implausible reality of A=20
Paradise Built in Hell, in which Solnit unmasks=20
the =93law of the jungle=94 for the imposter it represents.
People who initially step forward to provide help=20
after a community-wide disaster occurs are not=20
primarily the trained first responders, because=20
there are simply not enough of them. Rather, it=20
is the ordinary person who =96 temporarily=20
liberated from her or his mundane life =96 is=20
thrust into a new and vital role. Yes, this=20
person makes a choice to act. It is a choice born=20
of unique circumstances as the situation calls=20
forth hidden reserves of strength and confidence, and fosters cooperation.
I=92m fascinated by the examples Solnit presents of=20
ordinary people not simply showing compassion=20
because the aftermath of disaster brings out=20
people=92s altruistic tendencies, but coming=20
together in a particular type of anarchy, =93where=20
the citizenry by and large organize and care for=20
themselves.=94 Solnit investigates the kind of=20
mutual aid that is evidence of self-organizing=20
systems, and the profound effects on people=92s=20
lives when they pitch in to become a part of=20
something bigger than their nuclear family. Yet=20
in focusing on these effects among =93civil=20
society=94 in a city or other community, she doesn=92t neglect the larger=
analysis.
As it turns out, many disasters open the way for=20
change because during the time of immediate and=20
vast needs the government =93fails as if it were=20
overthrown=94 while civil society succeeds as=20
though a revolution has occurred. As we are=20
reminded during Interhelp processes, our=20
intentions are what make all the difference. A=20
mix of people with diverse backgrounds can=20
achieve loving success when a clear way is perceived.
For instance, because they cared about feeding=20
hurricane victims and knew their primitive-living=20
skills would be valuable, some Rainbow=20
Gathering/Rainbow Family participants quickly=20
made their way to the Gulf coast to work joyfully=20
side by side with members of an evangelical=20
Christian church group. They shared makeshift=20
kitchen space, served as many as four thousand=20
meals daily, and listened to survivors=92 stories=20
while setting up a =93wall-less mart=94 making basic=20
supplies available to those who needed them.=20
These hard-working helpers rose up together,=20
organically, in the face of a situation where=20
others (misled by public officials and the media=20
to fear violence) closed their hearts and turned away.
=93Beliefs matter,=94 Solnit reminds us. They matter=20
a lot. A question that is posed by this book is,=20
=93Which is more important =96 preserving property,=20
or extending a hand to people?=94 The panic that=20
occurs after a disaster is most often on the part=20
of those who have much invested in the status=20
quo, who fear the results of a broken-down=20
system. In fact, looting and violence were quite=20
rare in the emergencies that Solnit investigated.=20
Most violence was the result of repressive=20
measures put in place by authorities who=20
perceived that if they were not in control, then=20
the whole situation was out of control. Sadly,=20
these repressive measures then became secondary disasters.
When I reached the end of this book, I found=20
myself wishing for a second volume, covering yet=20
another array of crises: the South Pacific=20
tsunami, the China earthquake, the New England=20
ice storm, the San Diego-area fires. I feel an=20
insatiable desire to learn more about how=20
ordinary people can rise up to be their best=20
selves. Our best selves. Will we find our=20
affinity with survivalists who hole up=20
pioneer-style defending themselves by force, or=20
with a more gregarious, generous, and=20
open-hearted band of people from all walks of life?
For more information on Rebecca Solnit, check=20
your library system and have a peek at this great=20
San Francisco Chronicle article by Heidi Benson=20
at=20
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=3D/c/a/2004/06/13/CMGRE6NA5H1.DT=
L=20
in which Solnit is quoted as saying:
=93I have realized that the purpose of activism and=20
art, or at least of mine, is to make a world in=20
which people are producers of meaning, not=20
consumers. And that is connected to the politics of hope.=94
and:
=93People don=92t take stock of how much the world=20
has changed.=94 They can become attached to their=20
powerlessness and all too comfortable with=20
despair. =93If you tell people that they can=92t=20
change anything, then it=92s safe for them to go=20
home and watch sitcoms,=94 she says. =93But if you=20
tell people they=92re responsible for what the=20
world is like, they have to do something.=94
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Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<html>
<body>
A new Interhelp Newsletter has been posted at
<a href=3D"http://www.interhelpnetwork.org/pdf/winter10.pdf" eudora=3D"autou=
rl">
http://www.interhelpnetwork.org/pdf/winter10.pdf</a>.<br>
See below for a simple text version.<br><br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Interhelp Newsletter, Winter
2010</b></h2><div align=3D"center"> <br><br>
</div>
Dear Interhelpers and Friends,<br><br>
The 2009 Gathering of the Interhelp tribe in November attracted 29 adults
and 6 children (yeah!) for a lively weekend. Thanks to Michael Rice for
submitting his evocative account of =93being chosen=94 for our Saturday
afternoon Council of All Beings. Our =93being chosen=94 exercise consisted o=
f
an internal journey, accompanied by the steady rhythm of a heartbeat
drum.<br>
<br>
Next year=92s Gathering will be held on October 15-17, again at Woolman
Hill in western Mass. Mark your calendars! Another bit of Interhelp news:
Council member Judy Waldman from Maryland returns to active
participation. Welcome back, Judy<br>
<br>
Joanna Macy returns to the Rowe Conference Center for the weekend of May
7-9, and for the following week
(<a href=3D"http://www.rowecenter.org/" eudora=3D"autourl">
www.rowecenter.org</a>).<br>
<br>
Below you will find reviews of two exciting new books: <i>A Paradise
Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities that Arise in Disaster</i>
by Rebecca Solnit, and a personal favorite of mine entitled <i>Held in
Love</i>. Also, links to good stuff!<br>
<br>
Submissions to this newsletter are always welcome; deadline for the next
issue is March first.<br>
<br>
It=92s a good year to be in community. I=92m grateful that all of you
comprise a visionary and caring community that holds me steadily. Let=92s
keep in touch.<br>
<br>
Paula Hendrick<br>
<a href=3D"mailto:interhelpeditor@gmail.com">interhelpeditor@gmail.com</a>
<br>
<br>
<br><br>
<h1><b>Links</b></h1> <br>
Sarah Vesaki integrates Work that Reconnects processes into her
eco-chaplaincy work on coal mining issues. For monthly reports of her
work, see
<a href=3D"http://www.ecochaplaincy.net/SVLetters.html" eudora=3D"autourl">
www.ecochaplaincy.net/SVLetters.html</a>.<br>
<br>
Beth Sawin of the Sustainability Institute in Vermont presented their new
Climate Interactive computer modeling system in Copenhagen. See
<a href=3D"http://climateinteractive.wordpress.com/" eudora=3D"autourl">
http://climateinteractive.wordpress.com/</a>.<br>
<br>
Joanna Macy spoke about =93the gifts of uncertainty=94 at Bioneers 2009.
Watch and be heartened at
<a href=3D"http://vimeo.com/7914131" eudora=3D"autourl">
http://vimeo.com/7914131</a>.<br><br>
Once again, Chris Johnstone has written a fine editorial in the Great
Turning Times (Dec. 2009 issue).
<a href=3D"http://www.greatturningtimes.org/current.asp" eudora=3D"autourl">
http://www.greatturningtimes.org/current.asp</a> .<br>
<br><br>
<b>Being Chosen (for the Council of All Beings)<br>
</b>by Michael Rice<br>
<br>
I found myself uncharacteristically silent during Saturday morning=92s Elm
Dance. But I do know that I was particularly grieving the destruction by
Mountain Top Removal of Kentucky mountaintops, their trees, and the
surrounding brooks. At some point during the ensuing Milling, I felt
=93chosen=94 by Appalachian Mountaintops =96 prematurely chosen, for the
Council of All Beings. I felt quite dubious that I could enter a trance,
going =93down=94 through a =93portal=94 for a formal Being Chosen, but was
relieved that I could perhaps ratify the choice to which I had already
submitted. And then I chose a portal, a very precise spot on a slope a
house-width from the southeast corner of my house =96 the place where I in
fact plan to dig a root cellar into that hillside. And then Joyce=92s
drumming began and I went down. The trance came quickly. I slid past a
mole (not chosen) and a daylily bulb (not chosen). I wondered whether I
would see my mountaintop. And then, un-bidden, it came! A raven presented
itself and volunteered to fly up and check on my mountaintop! Clearly,
the raven was choosing me. It claimed to be visionary, that it could see
the mountaintop, and that it could warn of predators, of impending doom.
I was impatient, at this point, for the drumming to stop. Yet there were
to be other experiences: I saw a fire, camp-fire style; I flew around
with the raven and saw what was going on above ground; back below, I saw
some trees; I saw a clear brook =96 all were appealing =93beings=94 laying a
claim to me, but none as definitively as Raven itself. The clarity with
which it claimed me, chose me, could not be denied. I was waiting with
some boredom for the drumming to stop, or change, to drum me back up
through my portal; it finally did. My Raven had me! <br>
<br>
<br>
<br><br>
<h4><b>Held in Love: Life Stories to Inspire Us Through Times of
Change<br><br>
<br>
</b></h4><h3><b>Edited by Molly Young Brown and Carolyn Wilbur
Treadway</b></h3>Psychosynthesis Press, 2009<br>
review by Paula Hendrick<br>
<br>
For several weeks this fall for my morning reading (sitting up in bed
with the down comforter wrapped around me) I turned to this lovely and
powerful new book. Each morning my internal sense of connection and
belonging was touched and I relaxed a bit into the gifts and challenges
of the particular day, and of this particular moment on earth. <br>
<br>
Over 100 stories, poems, and images tell of contributors=92 experiences of
connection with a loving Source within and beyond themselves =96 in times
of hardship or unexpected grace, alone, in nature, or with others. These
writings and images offer examples of the ways Love can guide and sustain
us through the challenges of The Great Turning. Many of the contributors
(including editor Carolyn Treadway) were participants with me at Seeds of
the Future II with Joanna and Fran Macy in 2007.<br>
<br>
My favorite of the blurbs is from Bill Plotkin: =93We are each uniquely who
we are by virtue of our relationships to everything else, including to
the mysterious totality that holds everything. Not only are we not alone,
we are in an intimate dance with all things, a dance that defines us and
supports us. In this wonderful collection, Molly and Carolyn have
gathered from a host of colleagues poignant stories and poems describing
how people discover, often unexpectedly and astonishingly, their full
belonging to Earth, Universe, Mystery, Community, or Self.=94 <br>
<br>
You can =93look inside=94 <i>Held in Love</i> at Amazon.com. To order,
contact Carolyn@GraceFullLife.com.<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<b>Disaster as a Social Change Agent<br>
</b>Book Review by Carol Harley<br>
<br>
Ordinary people sometimes find themselves in dire circumstances affecting
an entire community. As Rebecca Solnit points out in her wonderful new
book, <i>A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities That
Arise in Disaster, </i>such crises can provide openings for real
political and social change. <br>
&nbs=
p; &n=
bsp; =
&nbs=
p; &n=
bsp; =
&nbs=
p; &n=
bsp;
<br>
I was held spellbound by Solnit=92s thoughtful exploration of five major
disasters, ranging from the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 to the
flooding of New Orleans. She delves into human responses to catastrophe
and finds a common thread among them: =93an emotion graver than happiness,
but deeply positive=94 often arises when people are confronted with an
intensely challenging set of circumstances. This inner response can be
life-changing, as in the case of young Dorothy Day. An earthquake
survivor who noticed that =93while the crisis lasted, people loved each
other,=94 Day ended up devoting much of her life to tirelessly promoting
the loving community she knew was possible =96 because she had experienced
it firsthand when people=92s most remarkable caring qualities manifested
during the disaster=92s immediate aftermath.<br>
<br>
This book is so rich that it=92s tricky to tease out just a few aspects to
comment on in a brief review. One compelling thing Solnit reveals is also
an aspect of the Work That Reconnects that excites me: the recognition
that through our human respon se to severe crises, we can, and do, enable
transformation that might be seen as catapulting us forward into our
=93highest and best=94 selves. I find myself wondering whether the biggest
disaster of all =96 climate disruption =96 may elicit the kind of
evolutionary leap (on the magnitude of a pole vault) necessary for the
whole of humanity to experience the shift in consciousness needed for
Earth healing. In this precarious time of apocalyptic popular culture
such as the movie =932012,=94 I=92d like to share a look at the seemingly
implausible reality of<i> A Paradise Built in Hell, </i>in which Solnit
unmasks the =93law of the jungle=94 for the imposter it represents.<br>
<br>
People who initially step forward to provide help after a community-wide
disaster occurs are not primarily the trained first responders, because
there are simply not enough of them. Rather, it is the ordinary person
who =96 temporarily liberated from her or his mundane life =96 is thrust int=
o
a new and vital role. Yes, this person makes a choice to act. It is a
choice born of unique circumstances as the situation calls forth hidden
reserves of strength and confidence, and fosters cooperation.<br>
<br>
I=92m fascinated by the examples Solnit presents of ordinary people not
simply showing compassion because the aftermath of disaster brings out
people=92s altruistic tendencies, but coming together in a particular type
of anarchy, =93where the citizenry by and large organize and care for
themselves.=94 Solnit investigates the kind of mutual aid that is evidence
of self-organizing systems, and the profound effects on people=92s lives
when they pitch in to become a part of something bigger than their
nuclear family. Yet in focusing on these effects among =93civil society=94 i=
n
a city or other community, she doesn=92t neglect the larger analysis.<br>
<br>
As it turns out, many disasters open the way for change because during
the time of immediate and vast needs the government =93fails as if it were
overthrown=94 while civil society succeeds as though a revolution has
occurred. As we are reminded during Interhelp processes, our intentions
are what make all the difference. A mix of people with diverse
backgrounds can achieve loving success when a clear way is
perceived.<br>
<br>
For instance, because they cared about feeding hurricane victims and knew
their primitive-living skills would be valuable, some Rainbow
Gathering/Rainbow Family participants quickly made their way to the Gulf
coast to work joyfully side by side with members of an evangelical
Christian church group. They shared makeshift kitchen space, served as
many as four thousand meals daily, and listened to survivors=92 stories
while setting up a =93wall-less mart=94 making basic supplies available to
those who needed them. These hard-working helpers rose up together,
organically, in the face of a situation where others (misled by public
officials and the media to fear violence) closed their hearts and turned
away.<br>
<br>
=93Beliefs matter,=94 Solnit reminds us. They matter a lot. A question that
is posed by this book is, =93Which is more important =96 preserving property=
,
or extending a hand to people?=94 The panic that occurs after a disaster is
most often on the part of those who have much invested in the status quo,
who fear the results of a broken-down system. In fact, looting and
violence were quite rare in the emergencies that Solnit investigated.
Most violence was the result of repressive measures put in place by
authorities who perceived that if they were not in control, then the
whole situation was out of control. Sadly, these repressive measures then
became secondary disasters. <br>
<br>
When I reached the end of this book, I found myself wishing for a second
volume, covering yet another array of crises: the South Pacific tsunami,
the China earthquake, the New England ice storm, the San Diego-area
fires. I feel an insatiable desire to learn more about how ordinary
people can rise up to be their best selves. Our best selves. Will we find
our affinity with survivalists who hole up pioneer-style defending
themselves by force, or with a more gregarious, generous, and
open-hearted band of people from all walks of life?<br>
<br>
For more information on Rebecca Solnit, check your library system and
have a peek at this great <i>San Francisco Chronicle</i> article by Heidi
Benson at
<a=
href=3D"http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=3D/c/a/2004/06/13/CMGRE=
6NA5H1.DTL" eudora=3D"autourl">
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=3D/c/a/2004/06/13/CMGRE6NA5H1.DT=
L</a>
in which Solnit is quoted as saying:<br>
=93I have realized that the purpose of activism and art, or at least of
mine, is to make a world in which people are producers of meaning, not
consumers. And that is connected to the politics of hope.=94<br>
and:<br>
=93People don=92t take stock of how much the world has changed.=94 They can
become attached to their powerlessness and all too comfortable with
despair. =93If you tell people that they can=92t change anything, then it=92=
s
safe for them to go home and watch sitcoms,=94 she says. =93But if you tell
people they=92re responsible for what the world is like, they have to do
something.=94 <br>
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