I am currently suspended over the beautiful red centre, flying to Cairns having spent a delightful four days at Uluru and Alice Springs. I enjoyed a meeting of the minds over the past two days, facilitating training with 12 passionate, committed people on how to best engage with communities when delivering rural services, especially indigenous communities. I leave with some wonderful reflections and ‘gifts’. While we met at the Centre, people travelled from the East, South and West coasts, and interestingly six participants came from NSW.
As for the immediate, I went to purchase a coffee at the airport before boarding, with increasing franticness I dug deeper into my bag as I realised that that my purse (my ‘mini life’) was not there. Talk about funny moments. At the hotel I offered two other travellers a lift to the airport in the taxi I had ordered. As it turned out, they had a taxi voucher and generously paid the fare and I therefore did not need to locate my purse. When I got to the check in, the lovely gentleman said that he trusted me and I did not need I.D. so – you guessed it, I did not need my purse. If it was not for my delight in caffeine, or if they were giving coffee away for free, I still would have been blissfully ignorant that my purse was awol. Quick phone calls to the motel and taxi confirmed that my purse was at large. My hope is that in my absent minded and mindless fashion, I popped it into my checked luggage. Otherwise, my arrival at Cairns will be most interesting, given that I do not have a contact there. The reason why I am sharing this story, which I think makes it even more amusing, is that I have had reason to immerse myself back into meditation and mindfulness over the past week. And I thought I was getting somewhere………
Over the past 6 months I have spent alot of time away from home for work. While I love what I am doing, which is often in remote parts of the Country without phone coverage, I do miss my daughter and partner terribly. This time I was feeling particularly anxious about being away so long. A number of pathways converged to lead me back into mindfulness, especially as a way of managing anxiety. One of those prompts was a sensational Leading Lights session with Patti Digh ‘What would you be doing today – if you only had 37 days to live?’. Patti was awe inspiring, as was her deep humility and wisdom (and thank you to Andrew Rixon for connecting us with Patti). This session and reading Patti’s work has reinforced a few messages that I know AND so easily forget. First and foremost, the more you surrender a need for ‘perceived’ control, the more deeply you immerse yourself and enjoy the moment. Secondly, every moment of life is special so celebrate that or in Patti’s words “hire the red convertible” (and that is a metaphor of course, you don’t need money to adopt this attitude). We have been doing this at home by having “breakfast celebrations” with a candle or two every other morning. The third was a terrific reminder about how freeing it is to let go of the need to be right. The mindfulness readings have reminded me of how much beauty I miss (so close it could trip me over) spending time thinking about what was or could be. And I thought I was doing very well, up until the airport.
We used open space principles as a platform for our training (especially whatever happens is the only thing that could have and whoever comes are the right people) . The group embraced both these principles and that of the marketplace (free space, choice, contribution, connection, continuity and certainty). We all learnt much from each other. One gift that I was given was the phrase “you must bend at the knees”. This is an expression often used in remote Aboriginal communities to express a person’s willingness to genuinely engage and talk “can they bend at the knees?”. Can they sit down and have a yarn and truly listen. I think that collectively over the two days we shared some strategies to enable even greater flexibility in our ‘knee bending’. These included things like remembering when relating to communities to make it fun and enjoyable – to have a hook, a reason why people want to engage. Once you have that, and with time and space, you will, when it is right, get to the more serious business. And yes isn’t that a universal need after all – for fun and enjoyment.
As for now, I am still wondering about the missing purse and if I will be making Cairns airport my temporary home. I am also cringing and laughing on the inside as unfortunately, this is not the first time I have left a purse (mostly while overseas) in a taxi, or on a plane, in fact I have kind of lost count of the places and times I have done this! Have I still not got the message…..
That all said I have enjoyed ‘being with you’ over the past 30 mins while writing this and the opportunity to share my thoughts and excitement from the past 2 days……I work with another group in Cairns for the next two days facilitating the same program, knowing that with a different group it will nothing but the same and hoping that I can bring as much attentiveness to this as in Alice Springs, purseless or not.
And here comes the coffee cart………………
Warmly,
Carla
P.S My purse was in my checked bag, However, I did end up sharing a taxi and I did offer to pay, and my lovely new travelling companion insisted – I kid you not!
Carla Rogers | Principal | EVOLVE
www.evolves.com.au
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