Dear Friends and Colleagues,
We invite you to answer the call to integrate spirit with your work in the
world. Join us in Spirited Work -- a learning community of explorers,
celebrators, mentors, learners, artists, and leaders. Experience a new way of
being and working together, an opportunity to be fully present to your spirit,
the spirit of community, and your connection to the natural world. Feel renewal
of your connectedness to all beings and the support to do what you need to
fulfill your highest purpose.
Spirited Work kept me moving forward in my personal and spiritual growth. It
consists of an amazing community of people who are doing all kinds of
interesting and important work in the world. It has brought me closer to
remembering what is real and important in life. There is a lot of creativity,
including music, art, dance, writing, as well as an opportunity to be in nature
and give it my full attention. And a place to spend some quality time alone.
Spirited Work is an Open Space learning community of practice, engaged in
deepening our commitment to personal and collective transformation through
service in the world. Our purpose is to build personal and collective capacity
for healthy and productive relationships, organizations and communities for the
sustainable evolution of earth, spirit and the human future. Our intention is
to welcome and be open to all who are attracted to Spirited Work, and to create
the abundance necessary for their full participation.
We meet seasonally and will launch our 5th annual cycle in January. Our next
gathering is January 23 - 26, 2003. Each gathering begins Thursday evening at
dinner and ends Sunday afternoon. In between our four seasonal face-to-face
gatherings, we are linked via a web-based learning community supported by
BigMindMedia..
Our learning themes for each season are based, in part, on the seasonal
archetypes of anthropologist and educator Angeles Arrien. The archetypes and
wisdom of her book, The Four-Fold Way, build on the collected wisdom of
indigenous people around the world.
Our gatherings are conducted in Open Space, a method of self-organizing based
on the simplest structural principles inviting the highest level of personal
responsibility, creativity and leadership. In Open Space, which is based on the
work of Harrison Owen, people gather in a marketplace of inquiry to offer and
participate in topics they care about, reflect and learn from one another, and
engage in "spirited work."
We use appreciative inquiry to track the emergence of spirit. We communicate by
telling stories, offering poetry, songs, and images, as well as engaging in
lively conversation and sharing silence. We meet in ritual space several times
each seasonal gathering for openings, closings, attunements, and meditation.
The affirmation of spirit is central to Spirited Work. There is always a strong
emphasis on the land of Chinook as a source of wisdom and inspiration, and the
reminder of our calling to responsibility for the whole earth.
Our circle is open. We encourage people to participate for all four seasons,
and we also welcome those who are only able to join us for one or more of our
seasonal gatherings. People from a broad variety of backgrounds have been
attracted to Spirited Work: from the arts, corporate life, and the non-profit
arena; educators, service providers, elders; people of diverse belief systems,
cultures, and nationalities.
Our seasonal gatherings provide opportunities for Spirited Workers to express
themselves creatively in all modalities: art, poetry, music, dance, theater,
clearing trails, tending the land, making new additions to the material
well-being of the Whidbey Institute. We express spirit in practical action for
the benefit of our community life as well as in our work in the world. So we
"chop wood, carry water" --- do our dishes, cleanup after ourselves, help set
up and put away whatever we use, and we take responsibility for the exchange of
money at the material level of our group life, as well.
Individual practice is grounded in taking responsibility for what has heart and
meaning: for evolving our selves, the collective, and our service in the world.
We are learning to live Open Space principles and the Four-Fold Way in our
daily lives. We are also opening space for organizational forms based on our
practice.
Organizational initiatives such as Watershed Legacy, Bountiful Table, and
PeaceTrees Vietnam have benefited from the practice ground provided by Spirited
Work. The Heart of America Bus project and the web portal CONNECT arose out of
Spirited Work. The concept of a Radiant Bank has been a continuing focus of our
attention as we've explored how to create abundance by sharing gifts and
resources. Participants have applied their learnings in other non-profits, in
corporate life and in higher education, too.
Seasonal gatherings are held on the Chinook land of the Whidbey Institute, a
beautiful retreat and conference center nestled in the intimacy of a hundred
acres of forest located three miles from the Clinton ferry dock on Whidbey
Island and about one hour travel time from Seattle.
We invite you to consider this as an opportunity to nourish the continuing
spiritual transformation of yourself, your life's work, the people and
organizations you touch, and your commitment to the shared future of our earth.
We consider these times urgent in nature yet fertile with opportunity,
demanding from us new forms of conscious spirit and dedicated action.
Please read the enclosed program description to learn more about Spirited Work.
A more detailed description of how our community operates - Community
Understandings - can be provided upon request. Also attached to this
invitation is the Registration form. A Community Fund financial assistance
form is available upon request. Call Toni Sar'h Petrinovich at 360-293-2853 if
you wish to inquire about financial assistance.
The Spirited Work 2003 Stewards,
Joy Elohim, Peggy Holman, Fritz and Vivienne Hull, Mark R. Jones, Mary Ella
Keblusek, Sue Keblusek, Sue McNab, Joy Moulton, Toni Sar'h Petrinovich, Jo
Shelver, Gabriel Shirley, Anne Stadler, Kent Wales and David Womeldorff
Whidbey Institute / Spirited Work 2003
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Statement of Commitment
Spirited Work is a program sponsored by the Whidbey Institute. Spirited Work
participants are asked to commit to being part of a community of practice which
gathers seasonally and whose members are linked in an on-line learning
environment. We ask participants to familiarize themselves with the work of
Angeles Arrien, author of The Four-Fold Way, and Harrison Owen, creator of Open
Space Technology.
As participants in a learning community, we are committed to creating and
sustaining a community that manifests higher purpose in every day life. We are
committed to the expansiveness and diversity of age and to true rights of
passage (from babies through elders). We are committed to learning to
acknowledge and honor the spirit of each person.
Community Practice of Open Space (Harrison Owen)
The Law of Two Feet: Take responsibility for what has heart and meaning.
Each of us exercises personal choice about who we are being; our views and
mental models; what we intend; what we say; what we do; what we explore; and
how we live and work together. We are each responsible for our own learning,
and the learning of the Community.
The Four Principles of Open Space
. Whoever Comes are the Right People
. Whatever Happens is the Only Thing that Could Have
. Whenever It Starts is the Right Time
. When It's Over It's Over
Seasonal Gatherings and Themes
Learning themes are based on the Seasonal Archetypes of The Four-Fold Way
(Angeles Arrien)
Winter: January 23-26, 2003 The Way of the Warrior
"Show up and choose to be present." Being present allows us to access the
human resources of power, presence and communication.
Spring: April 24-27, 2003 The Way of the Healer
"Pay attention to what has heart and meaning." Paying attention opens us to
the human resources of love, gratitude, acknowledgment and validation.
Summer: July 31-August 3, 2003 The Way of the Visionary
"Tell the truth without blame or judgment." Non-judgmental truthfulness
maintains our authenticity, and develops our inner vision and intuition.
Fall: November 13-16, 2003 The Way of the Teacher
"Be open to outcome, not attached to outcome." Openness and non-attachment
help us recover the human resources of wisdom and objectivity.
We encourage you to read The Four-Fold Way by Angeles Arrien (Harper San
Francisco, 1993), Expanding our Now: The Story of Open Space Technology, by
Harrison Owen (Berrett Kohler, 1997), and The Power of Spirit: How
Organizations Transform (Berrett Kohler, 2000), also by Harrison Owen.
Who Participates in Spirited Work?
. People with awareness of themselves as both learners and leaders
. People who feel called to participate in a conscious learning community with
a committed group of people over a committed period of time
. People who are firmly cognizant of the environmental, social and spiritual
challenges facing our generation and that of our children
. People in touch with the spirituality of their being who possess the courage
and openness to explore the universality of human wisdom as it appears and
reappears in diverse faith traditions
. People who seek a new "economic imagination" in organizing for productivity
and sustainability
Spirited Work is convened and managed by a group of Stewards, members of the
community who volunteer to take responsibility for Spirited Work administration
for one year.
We are committed to sharing all costs for facilities, food, materials, and
administration, and to keeping these costs to a minimum. The price for a full
cycle of four seasonal gatherings is $1,370. The price for a single seasonal
gathering is $410. Each season's tuition includes 3 nights accommodation
(Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights) and all meals from Thursday dinner
through Sunday brunch. Costs are lower for participants who do not require
housing at Chinook or who camp. Additional details are included on the
Registration Form.
Limited financial assistance generally is available. Please see Community Fund
Guidelines on our website www.spiritedwork.org for details. Participants
receiving financial assistance are expected to pay a minimum of $150 for each
seasonal gathering they attend. For information about the Community Fund or
the application and review process, please contact Toni Sar'h Petrinovich at
the number below.
Children of all ages are welcome at a reduced charge. Guest fees for meals and
housing have been established for those who wish to bring a partner, spouse, or
colleague to participate for a portion of a gathering. Details are included on
the Registration Form. If bringing guests or making payments, please print and
submit the registration form with the payment for your guest.
Seasonal reservations need to be made at least 10 days in advance. Late
registrations are accommodated on a "space available" basis and may involve
additional costs. Policies on cancellations and refunds are explained on the
Registration Form. A note: Whidbey Institute policy prohibits the presence of
dogs on Chinook Land whether on or off a leash.
Once we receive your registration information, we will acknowledge receipt via
email, noting balance due, if any.
For questions or more information,
see www.spiritedwork.org
or
contact Toni Sar'h Petrinovich
[360-293-2853 or [email protected]]
2003 Registration form.rtf
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