Conscious Choice Seattle: Let Go of the Letdown

November 2004 | From the Editor

Let Go of the Letdown

Every four years, November tends to be Letdown Month. We put our thoughts and considerable energy into deciding on presidential candidates and arguing over policies and social programs — this election year seemingly more than most. In the process, we think about our country and its place in the world — this year definitely more than most.

Then we elect a president and our collective citizenry tends to deflate back down to its usual size. But what if we didn’t let that happen this year? What if we made community-building our goal for November?

Seems like a good month to do it. Thanksgiving is built into the calendar, allowing most of us four days — or at least one bonus weekday — to connect with people we love and appreciate. Plus, our shorter days prompt us inside, where we can choose to interact with people rather than, say, TV or the Internet.

For instance, we can all look for ways to be active citizens beyond the voting booth. Consider this month’s Evergreen Citizen, Seattle writer and editor Paul Rogat Loeb. During a successful tour for his book “The Soul of a Citizen,” Loeb heard the hopelessness in people’s stories and conversations.

Loeb decided to do something about it. The result: He edited a book, “The Impossible Will Take a Little While: A Citizen’s Guide to Hope in a Time of Fear” (Basic Books) that supplies ways to build community and fight off hopelessness.

Another way to build community comes from the renowned educator and author Parker J. Palmer. He suggests the concept of creating your own “circle of trust” in his new book, “A Hidden Wholeness” (Jossey-Bass) that he envisions as “weaving community in a wounded world.”

“A circle of trust is a group of people who know how to be present to one another in a way that makes it safe for the soul to show up and make its claim on our lives,” explains Palmer. “This might mean two people or 20 or 30. What matters is not the size of the group, but the quality of relationships within it — ones that are gentle and respectful.”

Palmer is adamant that circles of trust are not therapy groups or following some hidden agenda. He recommends one important rule: “No fixing, no saving, no advising, no setting each other straight.”

If we followed this rule in our daily lives and work, chances are community would build to a crescendo in just a short time. Palmer is aware that his circles of trust are “against the grain in a culture where we tend to want to fix each other or ignore each other.”

Yet — important point here — Palmer just keeps writing from his heart. His best-selling book “The Courage to Teach” has inspired national teacher awards, while his more recent book, “Let Your Life Speak” is “must” reading for any of us striving to find our voice in relationships, work and community.

That, I’m guessing, is most of us. But the Paul Loebs and Parker Palmers of the world give us reasons for hope. They give us reasons to let go of the letdown this November.

Prizes for Readers, EM

Each year our magazine conducts a reader survey. Our goal is simple: Learn how we can be more in service to you. It’s your chance to tell us what you like, don’t like, want to see more, what editorial coverage resonates in your life.

That’s what in it for us. What’s in it for you — along with supporting our efforts — is a whole bunch of prizes to be awarded to lucky readers who fill out the reader survey. The survey is online this year. Everyone who fills out the reader survey will be automatically entered in drawings for all sorts of goodies you can inspect on our Website.

The survey won’t take long — you probably won’t even be able finish your cup of coffee or herbal tea — but we will be forever grateful. We are looking to build a whole new type of media company and we need your help. Please fill out our reader survey and tell a friend or loved one to do the same.

Plus, hey, it might be your lucky online day.

— Bob Condor

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