Dear all, Thank you Peggy for your and Harrison’s invitation to keep adding our personal learning - including with Harrison. I heard the invitation and it spoke to me. Finally, I made time to write.
I had the privilege to meet OST at age 18 through Michael M Pannwitz in 2000. He facilitated several OST meetings at my school in Berlin. He later helped me facilitate my first OST and today I am a fulfilled consultant and facilitator working the genuine contact way - having facilitated many many OSTs in person and online. I met Harrison several times in Europe: in Berlin for his birthday and a wave rider workshop, in Sardinia for the European OS Learning Exchange, where the fifth principle of OST emerged, in London for a WOSonOS with Phelim and his team, and in Sevilla where he facilitated an Open Space for 100 imams and 100 rabbis and I was a member of the team. And last time in Washington for the WOSonOS. Unfortunately, he could not attend the WosonOS in 2010 in Berlin, where we had self-published a book celebrating OST, with many of you on the OS List contributing. It was there that I realized that there is more than one origin story to the emergence of OST. The two martinis and the man with the hat is only one version. I was glad to learn many women were involved in creating OST, while Harrison wrote the book about it. Today I am facilitating and teaching OST based on his teachings and enriched by the “Berlin” approach and the Genuine Contact approach. Why some people, including Harrison, love wearing hats always - I don’t know. To me, it turns a bit into a costume (the man with the hat) and it feels less genuine. At the Open Space with the imams and rabbis, all the men had their unique outfits - it was a bit hilarious. When Harrison tried to make a last announcement at the marketplace after the agenda creation - standing in the middle of the room on a chair with his hat on - trying to get everyone’s attention I had another demystification moment. Of course, I like him and I love even more the OST grassroots movement in the world. I was truly truly impressed by the tender, calm, and very welcoming facilitation of Barry Owen at the WOSonOS in Washington - which I partly attribute to the son and father’s deep learning journey together. I am not a fan of the dominant storyline that Harrison promoted quite loudly that OST is all about “self-organization” - it feels too narrow and cold to me. But I should probably go back to his writings to remember he also said more about the essence of OST. One story, from the online gathering two weeks ago, felt also a bit harsh to me: When Harrison had recommended to the facilitator to walk the circle, look everyone in the eyes and internally say something like “fuck you all” or something along this line. I get the teaching point. And I trust he has shared other recommendations to OST facilitators that are warmer, focusing on spirit and acknowledging the dimension of holding people’s lives in one’s hands. I look forward to seeing you here there and hopefully in Istanbul and keep learning together. Lots of Love Anna Caroline P.s. Here a wonderful song from Etta James You can leave your hat on <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEThimbixQY> *Anna Caroline Türk* Mentor to Visionary Leaders +49(0)176 24872254 | TruthCircles.com <http://TruthCircles.com> On Mon, Mar 18, 2024 at 5:27 PM Peggy Holman via OSList <[email protected]> wrote: > As I’ve been reflecting on Harrison’s passing and what it means to me, I > stumbled into the message below that Harrison wrote to the OSlist > *exactly* 19 years ago - March 18, 2005. He asks: > > *What have we learned?* > > Seems like a fitting way to celebrate him...inviting us to answer his > question. An excerpt from below: > > My hope would be to inspire/goad/embarrass/encourage each one of you to > reflect of the past 20 years [now 39 years] (or at least that part of the > 20 years in which > you participated in the OS community) - and offer up your understanding of > what you, personally, have learned - about Open Space, yourself in Open > Space, about organizations in Open Space. And of course anything else you > choose to share. > > I would hope that we would hear from more than the usual suspects. This is > a > call to all you Lurkers! ...Not everybody has been heard from! Now would > be a good time to break > the silence!!! > > … > > Pretend this is a closing circle, and we are passing the > Talking Stick. Take a moment, maybe even a LONG moment (days/weeks) to > reflect on what you have learned, and then talk as long as you want. And > not > just the "good stuff" - the pain and disillusionment as well, if that is > your story. You have the stick! And please NO COMMENTARY! I suggest that we > just let this roll without response - just like a Closing Circle. > > > > So I leave you with the question while I reflect on my own response to it. > > Love, > Peggy > > > > _________________________________ > Peggy Holman > [email protected] > > Bellevue, WA 98006 > 206-948-0432 > www.peggyholman.com > > Enjoy the award winning Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval > into Opportunity <https://peggyholman.com/papers/engaging-emergence/> > > > "An angel told me that the only way to step into the fire and not get > burnt, is to become > the fire". > -- Drew Dellinger > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Begin forwarded message: > > *From: *Harrison Owen <[email protected]> > *Subject: **[OSLIST] What have we learned?* > *Date: *March 18, 2005 at 3:39:53 PM PST > *To: *[email protected] > *Reply-To: *OSLIST <[email protected]> > > In 1985 the first Open Space happened in Monterey California. This year (in > case you haven't noticed) is 2005. In short OS has been around for 20 years > (not counting the 14,000,000,000 years previously). So what have we > learned? > > > This is not an idle question. A recent publication of the American journal, > JABS - otherwise known as the "Journal of Applied Behavioral Science" > offered a "special issue" dealing with Large Group Interventions. All the > usual suspects appeared, but somehow Open Space was among the missing. One > of the editors, Barbara Bunker, who is definitely an acquaintance, and I > would consider a friend - told me that they had advertised for "papers" - > including the "OS Network" - and nothing showed up. Frankly, I don't recall > seeing anything, but my eyesight is getting pretty cloudy. Anyhow, I feel > inspired to ask a question - What have we learned? > > This is not about making a special edition of JABS. And for sure it is not > about "sour grapes" because we were not really present in JABS. It is all > about a genuine question - What have we learned???? > > My hope would be to inspire/goad/embarrass/encourage each one of you to > reflect of the past 20 years (or at least that part of the 20 years in > which > you participated in the OS community) - and offer up your understanding of > what you, personally, have learned - about Open Space, yourself in Open > Space, about organizations in Open Space. And of course anything else you > choose to share. > > I would hope that we would hear from more than the usual suspects. This is > a > call to all you Lurkers! Last time I checked there were some 440 folks on > OSLIST. Not everybody has been heard from! Now would be a good time to > break > the silence!!! > > And although it is doubtless Politically Incorrect - I suggest a rule for > our discussion. Pretend this is a closing circle, and we are passing the > Talking Stick. Take a moment, maybe even a LONG moment (days/weeks) to > reflect on what you have learned, and then talk as long as you want. And > not > just the "good stuff" - the pain and disillusionment as well, if that is > your story. You have the stick! And please NO COMENTARY! I suggest that we > just let this roll without response - just like a Closing Circle. > > In August we will gather for OSONOS in Halifax. That gathering will be a > lot > of things - but one of the things it WILL be is a celebration of 20 years > in > Open Space. I can think of no greater birthday present from everybody to > everybody than a reasoned, articulate description of what we have learned > in > the 20 years on the journey. > > Harrison > > Ps Assuming we have really learned something and manage to give that > learning expression, there is no doubt in my mind that a copy of our > Collected Works would be fun to read. ho > > > > > > > > Harrison Owen > 7808 River Falls Drive > Potomac, Maryland 20845 > Phone 301-365-2093 > > Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com <http://www.openspaceworld.com/ > > > > Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org > Personal website http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm > [email protected] > To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives Visit: > http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html > > > > > * > * > ========================================================== > [email protected] > ------------------------------ > To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, > view the archives of [email protected]: > http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html > > To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: > http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist > > > > OSList mailing list -- [email protected] > To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] > See the archives here: https://oslist.org/empathy/list/everyone.oslist.org
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