It's that time of year. Zac is in Phillip Island with friends, Rachel is in Aireys Inlet with firends, Heidi is out with a friend from primary school days, Johanna is in her last week of school, Maria is in Launceston interviewing for our Make the World Better Scholarship for Jane Franklin Hall and I am preparing for a some workshops that will finish the working year off for me. Scattered.
I'm sitting in the front room at Roslin (Ergo Office). I look out the window, seeing the blue sky and I can't help but feel the anticipation of hooking up and heading north again in 11 days time. Half of us will stay behind. Scattered.
December sees gatherings of various groups; friends, family and work colleagues. Friday week will be a family dinner after Zac's graduation ceremony, last week was our Annual Ergo Network Drinks, this week is our staff dinner, friends over for a barbecue, extended family barbecue, dancing concert, etc. Gathering. What does it mean to gather well?
There's something in there about being fully present. Listening. Asking. Attending. Giving. Being open.
What about scattering? What does it mean to scatter well? Scattering starts with parting, so saying goodbye well is a good foundation ... letting go. Heidi hand-wrote a bunch of letters for her friend who will be in South America for three months, to be opened periodically; that's good scattering. Onya Blossom. I reckon good scattering has also got something to do with being fully present, not wishing we were somewhere else - otherwise we miss out on the opportunities of the place we are in.
Scatter. Gather. Scatter. Gather. its a bit like a pulsing isn't it. The gathering can fuel the scattering which in turn fuels the gathering. Hmmm.