Update from Beijing; by Jim Manske
Warm aloha from chilly China!
Savoring our workshop last weekend in Hong Kong gives me the sweet taste of connection and a deeper understanding of how powerful NVC can be to knit connection. About 35 participants joined us for 2 full days of exploring 9 Skills for Navigating Conflict.
We supported people in finding the Zero Step by refining their intention to connect and their awareness of Presence. We got lots of positive feedback. Among my favorites from a social worker: “I had a better session with my client today. My intuition is right…this workshop changed my life.”
Offering NVC in a language other than English has increased both my clarity and my brevity. And to support our interpreters, I slow down, and get to savor more connection. We also get to be lazy trainers since we want folks to have as much time practicing in their own language as possible. Thus we speak less so that they can speak and practice more!
We made new friends and deepened connections we started to forge last summer. Our core team enjoyed many meals together before and during the workshop, and we have continued our connection via Facebook Messenger as well, sharing tidbits of our continuing adventures. I hope we get to go back to Hong Kong someday.
We’ve spent the week in Beijing, learning more about this ancient and vast city. Chinese culture amazes and inspires me. I received so little education about Asia in my Euro-centric education. To see the fruit of 5000 years of culture dazzles my imagination. If you want to learn more, I recommend “The Story of China” with the BBC’s Michael Wood available on Amazon Prime.
And the “view” from China is so different from how this country is portrayed in some of the media. Much of the time, I find it hard to distinguish between “us” and “them”, and instead discover “we”. We all have the same needs, longings, and desires. We all want to be happy and to experience more peace.
You can see some pictures of our sightseeing and training adventures on Facebook. If we are not friends yet, and you’d like to be, please send a request via FB. Although I am concerned about FB intrusion, I don’t yet know of a more powerful strategy to sustain connection with a lot of people with such ease. Do you?
We have two days of training commencing in the morning before heading to Yantai next week.
In the meantime, please consider joining Hawkeye and Becky to continue your learning!
Mahalo!
Jim
