Power of the Process
Recently, I had the opportunity to travel to Tennessee where I interned with Onsite’s Living Centered Program. I am always amazed at the personal transformations that occur in such a brief time on that campus.
Fifty or so strangers from around the world—most following a long day of travel—arrive on that first evening feeling awkward, shy, silent, and defensive. But soon, they begin to trust the process. Skip ahead six days to the closing celebration and the electrifying energy. The hum of sharing, the laughing, the hugging; group leaders struggle to gain participants’ attention.
What causes this radical shift? The process. The bucolic campus, educational gatherings each morning, freedom from distractions, small group activities, participants trade Facetime for real, live face time. There is sharing of mealtimes and socialization in a safe environment.
In my small group of nine participants and two facilitators, lives were transformed because of the social connection that promoted openness, caring, listening, understanding, and acceptance in an environment without judgement.
I listened as one participant in our small group expressed his deep appreciation for the opportunity to share openly of himself. To experience a complete trust that some may not experience at home.
Although it’s a wonderful experience that I highly recommend, it isn’t necessary to go away for a week to find trust and human connection. Transformation is available to all of us in many forms and over many timeframes. I return to my practice renewed, rejuvenated, reconfirmed that we must trust the process. Our own process. One of finding a place where we belong and a tribe with whom to share it.
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