Dear Learners,
Let me please share some learnings with you. They are pretty
straightforward and my purpose in presenting them to you for
consideration, 'digestive' or 'delete' is because I think all on the list
will find atunement in the learnings I take by giving them back
differingly.
First, I have had real world dealings with only one person on this list
and you would have no way of knowing who that person was. So if that
person is reading forgive me if you blush at the mention;-) This person is
possibly a kind of superb exemplar of what I take every one here to be.
With all the subjectivity that implies of course. We were sitting in
dialogue in a room with a view, really just talking our way through pure
ideas that might lay at the heart of this place. At that moment in time
he/she had no discernible income stream but many and varied
responsibilities, some close to home and some in the third world, and
believe me when I say hands on, I mean dirty and sometimes dying in the
arms hands on caring. The phone rang, head-hunter offering job prospect,
income around one hundred and twenty thousand pounds p.a. plus 'perks' CEO
level. (Maybe that is 'small beer' to some here, but my jaw dropped;-)
like Bucket's). As the now 'candidate' negotiated away the any possibility
purely on ethical grounds so far as I could see and hear and so the phone
went down and the/our conversation resumed without a back reference of
disturbance. At the close of the day inevitably I had to ask, "Why not"
and the answer, honest, was no more than a wink of the eye. Deep and
close up learning theory into practice turned into theory...I am awaiting
the call to play out the next loop....
The other is a simple cut and paste job;-) About nine months ago someone
in the US sent me this, a simple text written by a high school student at
a school they were connected with. They had read what i had posted up to
then and thought maybe I'd be interested. OK here it is.
"The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings,
but shorter tempers;
wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints;
we spend more, but have less;
we buy more, but enjoy it less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families;
more conveniences, but less time;
we have more degrees, but less sense;
more knowledge, but less judgement;
more experts, but more problems;
more medicine, but less wellness.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life;
we've added years to life, not life to years.
We've been all the way to the moon and back,
but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor.
We've conquered outer space, but not inner space;
we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul;
we've split the atom, but not our prejudice.
We have higher incomes, but lower morals;
we've become long on quantity, but short on quality.
These are the times of tall men, and short character;
steep profits, and shallow relationships.
These are the times of world peace, but domestic warfare;
more leisure, but less fun;
more kinds of food, but less nutrition.
These are days of two incomes, but more divorce;
of fancier houses, but broken homes.
It is a time when there is much in the show window and nothing in the
stockroom;
a time when technology can bring this letter to you,
and a time when you can choose to make a difference â^À¦ or just hit delete."
End of paste.
Powerful stuff Huh?
I know, I know that last line really does hit the old 'back of the
throat', but does it have to stick?
It has that ring of authenticity, but there may be the occasional one or
two who will harbour the thought, 'you made it up!' To those people I am
willing, if they write 'openly' so in the 'digest' to seek approval for
the verification of authenticity you seek, heck, I reckon this person
'adds value' to this place. And you?
My last thought is, maybe the 'first person' is 'related' to the 'second
person' somehow?
Best wishes,
Andrew Campbell
--Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <Richard@Karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>
"Learning-org" and the format of our message identifiers (LO1234, etc.) are trademarks of Richard Karash.