Winnfried--
interesting thread, to say the least. a comment or two on "the future."
for many, the future is a vision, or dream. for myself, I see the future
as a component of "myself and my circumstances" that reflects past,
present and potential. I find, within myself, a "unifying theme" of
existence (and among some of my friends, this existence is
multidimensional and pluralistic--a "feeling" with which I tend to
agree).
this unifying theme appears often like the characteristics of a
"personality," in that it stipulates imbedded characteristics,
motivations, needs and sentiments that can be used (relatively
successfully) to predict the future by using patterns of past behavior.
this doesn't negate the possibility of change (or free will), simply
generates the circumstances from which potentialities develop.
what this does for me is to provide for a framework of faith in myself
concerning my potential for action or behavior within the context of my
circumstances. my metaphysical faith is placed in the context of a "life
continuum" which exists beyond the linear experience which I'm currently
immersed in, and which reflects the unifying theme which is myself.
autonomy and interconnectivity coexist within this experience and beyond.
now--how this works for me in an organization is quite similar.
autonomy--and connectivity--are the fundamental relationship elements in
any community or organization. much of the learning that happens concerns
knowing myself and how to develop a more sophisticated connectivity with
those other autonomous entities with whom I'm connected. this isn't a
dualistic relationship, of course...it's a systemic or living
relationship. but I do understand your frame of reference, as it is quite
close to the one in which I grew up. it just didn't quite fit into my
personal reality.
one last note on this topic for today--
I needed to drive over to Washington State's Long Beach peninsula
today--from Astoria, that takes you over a 7 km bridge that crosses the
mouth of the Columbia River. Today, most of the bridge was enveloped in a
low-lying cloud which obscured about 6 km of the span itself as well as
the other bank of the river. As I climbed up into the cloud from Astoria,
I couldn't help but think about this thread--and the "faith" I had that
there truly was a span going on to the other shore! (Imagine my surprise
if it had been disassembled during the night!) There was enough faith to
take me up and over at 80kph, knowing that I would eventually come out on
the other side. This faith (or trust, if you will) was based on my past
experience, some life-experience with fundamental laws of physics,
mechanics and the expectation that all of those factors were still
working. My fascination with popular television shows (namely, the
X-files, the Twilight Zone and the Outer Limits) notwithstanding, I still
went over the bridge and made it to the other side. Knowing the great
span (and frequently occurring low clouds) in your region of the world,
Winnfried, I assumed that you often approached this same dilemma with a
similar faith "in the way things ought to be."
walk in peace,
Doc
-- "In a completely rational society the best of us would aspire to be teachers, and the rest of us aspire to something less." -Lee IacoccaThresholds <http://www.thresholds.com> Meeting Masters <http://www.thresholds.com/masters.html> Richard C. "Doc" Holloway Astoria, Or & Olympia, WA USA ICQ# 10849650 voice 360.786.0925
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