Moving from meetings to online/email list-only
Maren Souders
I want to say a big thanks to all of you for your interest in this
group over the last eight or so months that we've been meeting and
sharing resources through this list. I started the group last summer,
with a vision that many of my unemployed friends and acquaintances, as
well as their friends and acquaintances, as well as people I'd never
met yet, could meet up together, form friendships, share and nurture
their dreams and passions, and generally make un- or under-employment
and "the job search" less lonely and more inspiring and abundant. I
had envisioned maybe eight to twelve folks attending each gathering,
cooking up exciting new ventures together, forging new friendships and
creative and/or business partnerships, and forming an ongoing,
cohesive group that was self-sustaining and which people could join,
or shift away from, as their employment status shifted, over time. I
also envisioned this email list as a vibrant, bustling marketplace of
ideas and mutual emotional/moral support.
To some extent, this has indeed happened. A number of my friends have
attended gatherings and/or contributed to this list; a number of
people I'd never met before have gotten involved in some way (and I
have very much enjoyed meeting all of you); several folks have found
meaningful employment or educational opportunities over the course of
these months; and I've seen people sharing resources with each other
both at our gatherings and on this list.
I'm very gratified about all of that.
However, over the past few months, attendance at the gatherings has
dwindled significantly, so that typically only one or two other people
besides me have attended. Often it has been the same people - and I
love that they have wanted to be consistently involved - but that
meant that infusions of new energy, ideas, visions, etc were few and
far between.
Meanwhile, my own life has remained very busy, with my work and a
variety of other creative projects and social activities... so at this
time, I'm deciding not to continue holding the in-person gatherings.
If anyone here would like to take the reins and keep them going, I
would wholeheartedly support that - and you may find that more people
would get involved over time. (A number of my friends and
acquaintances have told me individually that they liked the idea and
had been intending to join the gatherings at some point, but hadn't
yet found the time.) The folks at the Purest Cafe, Inty and Tommy,
have been wonderfully supportive, offering us free use of their
downtown space as well as promotion on their Facebook page. I highly
recommend contacting them if you ever want to hold an event in a
downtown space (115 SW Ash St)... or if you just want some good
coffee, tea, or Japanese crepes when you're down near Saturday Market
or Voodoo Doughnut.
I do intend to keep this email list up and running, and I still
encourage everyone to post resources, ideas, collaborative visions,
etc, whenever you like. I plan to continue forwarding items that I
think might be of interest to folks here. If you know anyone who
might enjoy such a list, please encourage them to join.
Thanks again to all of you for being here... and best of luck to you
all in manifesting your dreams in every area of your life!
~Maren
--
"Everything you want is just outside your comfort zone."
R. Allen