One of my favorites is "creating a space for the truth to descend". This may be a little too left-brain to qualify as a true metaphor, but it does imply some of OS's real magic. J
-----Original Message----- From: OSLIST [mailto:osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu] On Behalf Of Douglas D. Germann, Sr. Sent: Friday, October 22, 2004 7:56 AM To: osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu Subject: Metaphors for the magic? Dear friends-- In the last few weeks I have been increasingly frustrated by the responses I get from people to my descriptions of a community OST event I am otherwise having fun dis-organizing. <grin> When I try to describe the magic of OS, I get responses like the one the other day: "Oh, you mean it is a networking event?" So I have been thinking of what kinds of metaphors might communicate the magic, mystery and awe we find in experience. What concrete metaphors can you think of for something that produces unexpected results, out of all proportion--quantitatively or qualitatively--to what the initial conditions were (that is, people gathering to converse)? Here are a couple I have come up with, so far: This is like shaking a bottle of pop--and then popping the lid. It is like popcorn--a little corn, a little oil, a little heat--soon a reaction gives us enough food for a party! Or who could predict, without knowing humanity, that a party in the back seat of a '56 Chevy would lead to dirty diapers at 4 am? This is a boiling roiling pot; a darkroom where pictures of the future can be developed; a germinating kettle for works new and wonderful. A few seeds in the wind, a collection of moisture, a little time, and soon even the desert blooms. A little dirt, a little manure, a few seeds, some rainy days, and in no time you get flowers all over! A little dollop of batter in the paper becomes an overflowing muffin. This is a creative group--I am sure you will be able to come up with greater metaphors than these. :-Doug. Germann Seeking people making community change. * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
