World Economy Weekend Intensive Friends,
A little over a week ago Think OutWord, partnering with the E. F. Schumacher Society, held a 3 day intensive study of Rudolf Steiner's lecture cycle "World Economy." 28 people came. We sat in a circle and discussed Steiner's truly radical economic ideas and their relation to the present crisis we find ourselves in. 14 participants presented 14 lectures in 14 hours. There was plenty of good food, late night conversations, and song. It was powerful. A number of participants described it beautifully in an email exchange afterwards:
"I've been touched and strengthened by the lives each of you brought to our weekend and the subtle living voice that joined our circle, asking us to break out beyond our habitual ways of seeing the world to a living experience of our deepest connections. I've been reminded that the decisions that follow from that way of looking at the world naturally create new forms and new human capacities. Always."
"I'm still spinning from that weekend, not with information and concepts so much as with the sense of tremendous integrity and intention that was gathered among us there."
"I've been to a few conferences in my days.... being the conference junkie that I am... and I have never, and I mean never, seen anything like this before. Glad to hear I wasn't the only one pretty much blown away. So tight. So focused. So on point!"
"As a relative newbie to just about everything last weekend I have to vociferously proclaim my gratitude to all involved and my awe at what the intensive was able to achieve. I have never been so impressed and so humbled by a group so driven to understand and articulate such complex and important concepts."
"All the ideas I'm processing boil down to 'that was the kind of headspin that changes your life but never stops spinning' and, 'holy shit! That was powerful love I experienced.'"
One other thing I should say is that since we finished, I can't shake the feeling that no matter how much we manipulate the current system, it won't do any good. We need new understandings and new perceptions - above all new modes of perceiving. There are individuals and organizations out there doing this work, but unfortunately I doubt their ideas will find their way into the architectural blueprints being drawn up for a "new" global economic system. Having caught a glimpse of a healthy economic organism I'm becoming increasingly worried about the direction ours is headed in.
Anyways, besides the intensive, Think OutWord has been busy putting together an appeal letter and a small brochure describing the past year and looking to the future. We'll be mailing it out next week. We desperately need to build up our mailing list (this is where most charitable giving happens) so if you're interested in the brochure and potentially helping to sustain us please reply back and let me know your mailing address.
Lastly, for anyone living in the Great Barrington/Harlemville area, Walking the Dog Theater's Improv Ensemble (http://www.wtdtheater.org/) will be doing a benefit performance to help raise money for the Credere grants that we're administering (http://www.thinkoutword.org/grants.html). The performance is this Sunday, November 30th @ 7:30 pm at Space 360 in Hudson, NY. Hope to see many of you there!
Thanks,
Seth
