Recurring numbers, affirmations, questions which arose from questions, food for thought and a wonderful poem…
These were a handful of things which came out of our latest Street Wisdom event in Cirencester on January 27 2019.
Whether you find an answer to your question, or whether you even have a question at all, I have not so far come across anyone who hasn’t come away from a Street Wisdom walk with something of value.
During the last hour of our time together, we gather in our space at The Inner Temple Yoga Studio and share what we have found, or anything else which needs sharing. And if we don’t feel like sharing, then just listening is perfectly fine!! There is something about sharing which brings a deep connection to the others you are sitting with. We muse, we laugh, and occasionally we cry. When the sharing is done in a sacred and safe space, the sense of connection, empathy, respect and love for the other members of your group are heightened.
“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”
― Mother Teresa
And Erma Bombeck – an American journalist who wrote widely about suburban life said “It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else.”
Two weeks ago, I was walking through Cirencester and made eye contact with a passing woman. I knew that I knew her but couldn’t place, in that instant, where from. As she looked at me and smiled a ‘hello’, I felt a deep warmth for her. I smiled a ‘hello’ back and then I knew. She was one of our participants from a previous Street Wisdom. We moved to each other and hugged and passed the time of day. This moment, for me, contained the essence of this movement: a deep respect and warmth for others and their stories. A sense of camaraderie which does not dissipate as soon as the event is over. This is how we will eventually change the vibration in which we live.
And then there was this:
Risks by Leo F. Buscaglia
To laugh is to risk appearing a fool,
To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
To reach out to another is to risk involvement,
To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self.
To place your ideas and dreams before a crowd is to risk their loss.
To love is to risk not being loved in return,
To live is to risk dying,
To hope is to risk despair,
To try is to risk failure.
But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing.
He may avoid suffering and sorrow,
But he cannot learn, feel, change, grow or live.
Chained by his servitude he is a slave who has forfeited all freedom.
Only a person who risks is free.
by Teena Ackery. Writer, Walker, Potter