Here We Are .... Well, Some Of Us

Prior to our meeting, Porena and I had discussed what kind of 'ritual' might be a good way of opening and closing our meetings.   We thought that perhaps giving everyone an opportunity to light a candle for whatever purpose they wanted, might be a good idea PLUS allocating 20 seconds of silence for us all to focus on the reason we belong to the community, or what we want to achieve from the meeting.

As far as 'regulating' in some way, whose turn it is to speak at the meetings, it was generally felt that the Talking Stick was a good symbol of whose turn it was to speak, but the practicality of this was a bit unwieldy - handing the stick on for example - and as it turned out, a simple, "I now hand the stick to ... " generally worked well.   It also helps if the 'stick' goes round the circle in a clockwise motion.   That way, people can at least be in the process of typing their responses because they know they are next to speak.

There was a little bit of chat lag, but generally we soon established a flow and Porena asked everyone to give a quick summary of why we were there:

[2008/06/15 14:17]  Porena Pomilio: I'd just like to say that I have two feelings on how serious this is that we are trying to do, and the other that I am smiling cos it's a laugh as well

[2008/06/15 14:19]  Boron Homewood: I would like to say that I look forward to a community where I can be myself and share with others.

[2008/06/15 14:19]  Boron Homewood: Friends, true friends are the most important

[2008/06/15 14:21]  Gem Karas: I feel that the most important thing for me is the friendship and intelligent stimulating conversation

[2008/06/15 14:21]  Gem Karas: It's nice to be at home with so many people

[2008/06/15 14:22]  Cern Box: I am just curious    (Cern Box is the sculptor who GAVE us the Gandhi statue)

[2008/06/15 14:23]  Cern Box: No I dont think so I am just curious about the poeple here and maybe find some new interesting folk

[2008/06/15 14:22]  Sojourner Merryman: I'm glad to be making new friendships, and wonder what sort of adventure our times together will be!

[2008/06/15 14:23]  Mikele Ihnen: I would like to ask how leadership works in these sorts of communities.... if traditional hierachic structures are essentially disregarded?

[2008/06/15 14:24]  Cal Freenote: I am confident that, as long as we have a shared purpose here, self-organization will work and this community will succeed

[2008/06/15 14:25]  Flocke Eizenstark: At the moment I feel examined and not really have mind open for perfect paradise or secondlife to be honest but i do feel home here and it is good to be here during small breaks.

[2008/06/15 14:26]  Flocke Eizenstark: its good to have friends around here

[2008/06/15 14:26]  You: 'I'm just looking forward to seeing what we will all create together.

[2008/06/15 14:27]  Archer Mokeev: I'm here today to listen.... to see what community this place was created for.

Then we had the opportunity of hearing Boron, who has lived in a real life intentional community for 30 years, speak.

[2008/06/15 14:30]  Boron Homewood: I live in a community in the bush on top of a small mountain

[2008/06/15 14:30]  Boron Homewood: It has been going over 30 years and it is a healthy vibrant group of people in a wonderful landscape

[2008/06/15 14:31]  Boron Homewood: There is a real sense of place there. People have a strong commitment to each other

[2008/06/15 14:32]  Boron Homewood: We strive for a sustainable lifestyle

[2008/06/15 14:32]  Boron Homewood: We are not on mains electricity and we run about 100 acres of farmland

[2008/06/15 14:33]  Boron Homewood: Most of the 30 houses on the properety have been owner built. Most are odd styles like mud brick or rammed earth.

[2008/06/15 14:34]  Boron Homewood: I built my own house and have raised 2 girls there. They are now adults

[2008/06/15 14:34]  Boron Homewood: It has been a wonderful place to bring up kids. We are very connected with nature and the out of doors

[2008/06/15 14:35]  Boron Homewood: The best part is the friendships that we have developed there

[2008/06/15 14:35]  Boron Homewood: It is a bit like an extended family.

[2008/06/15 14:36]  Boron Homewood: Each has their own house, but it is on common land

[2008/06/15 14:36]  Boron Homewood: It is a good balance between privacy and community interaction

[2008/06/15 14:37]  Mikele Ihnen: how have you determined the shared spiritual purpose within the group Boron?

[2008/06/15 14:37]  Boron Homewood: We have a manifesto. That lays out our aims and basic rules. It is not a hard core idealist community. It is more flexible

[2008/06/15 14:39]  You: I've been to Boron's community

[2008/06/15 14:39]  You: and you can see the view from his house at his exhibition

[2008/06/15 14:39]  You: spectacular views

[2008/06/15 14:40]  You: I was looking at living there myself

[2008/06/15 14:40]  You: but they have a no dog policy

[2008/06/15 14:40]  You: As far as I know the community is set up in 'sections'

[2008/06/15 14:40]  You: so you can choose which 'area or section you want to build in.

[2008/06/15 14:43]  You: One of the things I like about an IC is the shared group activities ...

[2008/06/15 14:44]  You: like helping one another to build your home.

[2008/06/15 14:44]  You: They also have a large vegetable garden

[2008/06/15 14:44]  You: where one of the residents was growing grapes for wine

[2008/06/15 14:44]  You: excess produce is taken to the local community for purchase.

At this stage Boron had crashed, so while we were waiting for him to come back online, I handed out this week's Members' Folders which are just a collection of landmarks, notecards, links to real life intentional communities etc., which may be useful to people.   Information provided there can either be kept or ditched, according to personal wishes.   If anyone has something they would like distributed throughout our community, just give it to me and I'll put it in the weekly Folders.

[2008/06/15 14:45]  Porena Pomilio: Do they do the farming themselves?

[2008/06/15 14:45]  You: There were only a couple of people from the community

[2008/06/15 14:45]  You: who had taken on responsibility for growing vegs

[2008/06/15 14:45]  You: It's in a large fenced area

[2008/06/15 14:45]  You: to keep out kangaroos, wombats etc.

[2008/06/15 14:46]  You: Welcome back Boron - I was just telling everyone about what I saw when I visited your community

[2008/06/15 14:47]  Mikele Ihnen: Boron? Where does the "buck stops here" begin and end in your community?

[2008/06/15 14:47]  Boron Homewood: Do you mean who takes responsibility?

[2008/06/15 14:48]  Boron Homewood: We are a properly consituted Co-operative.

[2008/06/15 14:48]  Boron Homewood: And we are legally required to have a board of directors

[2008/06/15 14:49]  Boron Homewood: We elect 7 directors and they have the legal responsibility

[2008/06/15 14:49]  Boron Homewood: But everyone is involved in the decision making process

[2008/06/15 14:49]  You: Boron, what were some of the early difficulties you had in the community?

[2008/06/15 14:50]  Boron Homewood: With any large group of people there will always be differences. It is important to maintain a caring commitment to one another through any conflict

[2008/06/15 14:51]  You: So, the success of the community is the prime objective?

[2008/06/15 14:51]  Boron Homewood: Our basic purpose is to live sustainably within our environment and to build a caring community. It's pretty broad. Lots of room for individual ideas

[2008/06/15 14:52]  Boron Homewood: It takes alot of tolerance and understanding

[2008/06/15 14:52]  You: What kind of processes do you have in place for dealing with conflict then?

[2008/06/15 14:53]  Boron Homewood: We have regular meetings. Director's meetings deal with management issues. And make policy decisions

[2008/06/15 14:53]  Boron Homewood: Community meetings deal with policy.

[2008/06/15 14:54]  Mikele Ihnen: it sounds very time consuming

[2008/06/15 14:54]  Boron Homewood: We set up lots of committees to deal with things like land management, power and water, finance, etc.

[2008/06/15 14:54]  Mikele Ihnen: how efficient is this policy process

[2008/06/15 14:54]  Boron Homewood: The work is spead between all, so its not to much for any individual

[2008/06/15 14:55]  Porena Pomilio: How do you spread the work out?

[2008/06/15 14:55]  You: Boron, how many people are in your community?

[2008/06/15 14:55]  Boron Homewood: We have been going for such a long time, our policies are fairly well worked out. But change is continual (and good)

[2008/06/15 14:55]  Boron Homewood: There are 30 families. Of various sizes.

[2008/06/15 14:56]  Boron Homewood: A lot of the jobs are voluntary. Some key positions like treasurer have a paid honorarium

[2008/06/15 14:56]  You: It's an idyllic place Boron - especially since the kids can have horses there.

[2008/06/15 14:56]  Porena Pomilio: People say these things don't work - yet yours obviously does

[2008/06/15 14:57]  Boron Homewood: We have monthly workdays. Like yesterday. The community mostly come and work for the day. We have a large commmunity lunch

[2008/06/15 14:58]  Boron Homewood: I think that the success of our community has several elements.

[2008/06/15 14:59]  Boron Homewood: First, We have a wonderful property. 600 acres on top of a forested mountain.

[2008/06/15 15:00]  Boron Homewood: And we have a strong commitment to the environment. We started before it was trendy :-))

[2008/06/15 15:00]  Boron Homewood: We have a very committed group that truly cares for each other.

[2008/06/15 15:01]  Cal Freenote: Has anyone ever left, Boron?

[2008/06/15 15:01]  Boron Homewood: Well, we are more conservative than most of the locals think we are!

[2008/06/15 15:01]  You: Your community has been through some fairly traumatic experiences hasn't it Boron - bushfire threats a couple of times?

[2008/06/15 15:02]  Boron Homewood: Yes, Over 30 years we have had lots of coming and going. That is good. new energy is important

[2008/06/15 15:02]  Boron Homewood: Living in the bush is not easy. But it is rewarding

[2008/06/15 15:03]  You: As you say, you were living in harmony with nature long before it was trendy.

[2008/06/15 15:03]  Cal Freenote: have the houses been hard for people to sell?

[2008/06/15 15:03]  Boron Homewood: I like to live close to the elements. Even the frightening ones!

[2008/06/15 15:03]  Porena Pomilio: What material standard do you have... electricity, air con, etc?

[2008/06/15 15:04]  You: One of the houses I saw being built there was a hay bale house

[2008/06/15 15:04]  You: with doors off hotel beer cabinets as double glazed windows.

[2008/06/15 15:04]  You: very clever

[2008/06/15 15:04]  Boron Homewood: There is a demand for houses here now. So it's not hard to sell. But there are complicatiuons on a collective title. Like you can't get a normal home loan, because the bank can't reposess it.

[2008/06/15 15:06]  Boron Homewood: The power issue is one area where we differ from normal houses. We have solar electricity, but it means we have to be real careful with how we use it

[2008/06/15 15:06]  You: You share the solar facilities Boron?

[2008/06/15 15:06]  You: or each house has their own set up?

[2008/06/15 15:07]  Boron Homewood: The setup with the electricity varies a bit around the place.  Some have common systems and other have their own. Mostly it is individual systems

[2008/06/15 15:08]  Boron Homewood: Sharing has a raft of complications regarding equity and effort. Big question to resolve

[2008/06/15 15:08]  Sojourner Merryman: Do most people work on the property, or somewhere else?

[2008/06/15 15:08]  You: Actually, from memory ...'the hay bale place is going to share some kind of heating/electricity equipment with a neighbour?

[2008/06/15 15:08]  Boron Homewood: A few derive income off the property, but most have to go off to work

[2008/06/15 15:09]  Cal Freenote: Car-pooling used, boron?

[2008/06/15 15:10]  Boron Homewood: Car-pooling is something we are taking on board, with the rise in fuel cost, its a good idea. but it will be hard for people to accept the inconvienience

[2008/06/15 15:10]  Cal Freenote: i guess telework is hard to arrange

[2008/06/15 15:10]  Boron Homewood: We are about 15km from town.

[2008/06/15 15:11]  Boron Homewood: Yes, we have a wide range of professions within our community

[2008/06/15 15:11]  Porena Pomilio: A reflection.. you say policies have been worked out. That sounds easier that debating every decision. Right?

[2008/06/15 15:12]  Boron Homewood: We seem to have enough to talk about to keep everyone interested. If it gets to quiet, some invent issues to debate!

[2008/06/15 15:13]  Boron Homewood: Some enjoy conflict more than others. Its important to respect all.

[2008/06/15 15:13]  Cal Freenote: Has anyone ever left because of a dispute that couldn't be resolved?

[2008/06/15 15:14]  Boron Homewood: Yes. it is inevitable given human nature

[2008/06/15 15:14]  You: What seem to be the 'deal breaker' issues Boron?

[2008/06/15 15:15]  Boron Homewood: It is hard enough to keep a couple living harmoniously. Think what would be required to keep 30 together!

[2008/06/15 15:16]  Boron Homewood: The most important issue, as I see it, is to respect each other's opinion. And to have a big helping of tolerance. But then, that just my opinion.

[2008/06/15 15:16]  You: You have a 'no dog' restriction ... presumably that came about from some people having dogs and the threat to wildlife?

[2008/06/15 15:17]  Boron Homewood: We have banned dogs and cats from the start. We have a very health native wildlife community here. Predators would be very disruptive.

[2008/06/15 15:18]  Boron Homewood: I must say, I like dogs and cats. But not in the bush

[2008/06/15 15:17]  You: What kind of interaction do you have with the 'outside' community?

[2008/06/15 15:18]  You: You share excess vegetables I know...

[2008/06/15 15:18]  Boron Homewood: We have a commmunity horticultural project that produces a fair bit of food

[2008/06/15 15:19]  Boron Homewood: We also operate a Learning Centre and have student groups come and stay and do environmental courses

[2008/06/15 15:20]  Boron Homewood: We have a large community Centre that can bed 30 guests

[2008/06/15 15:21]  Cal Freenote: Wow who pays to maintain the CC?

[2008/06/15 15:21]  Boron Homewood: We pay calls and dues. We also make some $ from Learning Centre activities and other events.

[2008/06/15 15:22]  Boron Homewood: We also have a bi-annual Festival. The last one made about $8,000 clear after costs.

[2008/06/15 15:22]  Porena Pomilio: Advice for us starting out - is there anything WE Should be doing we are not?

[2008/06/15 15:23]  Boron Homewood: The one thing I think we need to focus on to start is to have a common purpose for our IC. It can be broad, but it needs to be something we can work together on

[2008/06/15 15:24]  Boron Homewood: The environment is obvious. But what does that mean in SL?

[2008/06/15 15:26]  Sojourner Merryman: Of course Boron's community is not self-sufficient, they have to go outside for income and many goods and services.

[2008/06/15 15:26]  Boron Homewood: Complete self sufficency is an unreal expectation. But there is alot you CAN do.

[2008/06/15 15:26]  Cal Freenote: good point...but a lot more self-sufficient than most communities! :-)

[2008/06/15 15:27]  Sojourner Merryman: Boron, I don't know how we can give a round of applause in SL, but thanks for typing so much for us!

[2008/06/15 15:27]  Boron Homewood: Thanks, I'm happy to chat with anyone on a one-on-one basis as well

[2008/06/15 15:27]  You: so next week let's talk about what we can do here ...

[2008/06/15 15:28]  You: shall we?

[2008/06/15 15:28]  Porena Pomilio: I can't make it, I'm in Palermo....

[2008/06/15 15:28]  You: Is there anything else anyone wants to share with group before we go and do a group photo?

[2008/06/15 15:28]  Sojourner Merryman: Yes, I would like us to move a bit towards figuring out common purposes.

To this end, Soj has sent out a survey which should give us something to work with at our meeting this coming weekend.   Even though Porena won't be able to attend, we can still start the process of "Where are we going?"

After the meeting I briefly discussed having a community project with a couple of people and we thought that it would be good for us all to work on something together as a team-building exercise.    What do people think of us building a ship/galleon together?    It has to be a sail craft of some kind - large enough to fit a community of 20 people on.    OR is there any other project that people have in mind that we could all work on together?    I'm no builder, but I think we have enough expertise in the community to take this on - both Archer and Artic/Flocke have building skills I'm sure they wouldn't mind sharing with us all.

P.S. As you can see from the group photo, the poseball setting I picked up is not very inspiring - so if anyone comes across something a bit more animated, let's grab it!

AND one that the un-used balls don't show up in.

I chose Gandhi as our 'symbol' as he lived a very simple life, and a life of peace dedicated to bringing his country together.   Cern suggested that we put a sound byte or two into the statue, so that when an avatar comes close, he starts to speak.    If anyone comes across some inspiring 'voice' from Gandhi, can they please get in touch with Cern Box?     (I'm going to be working on putting together a bit of a bio on Gandhi, which people will get when they click on the statue).

P.S.    Not everyone who was at the meeting was able to stay around for the group photo.