‽istis ponders volunteering, expertise and tapping (weekending April 27th 2024)

 

‽istis ponders volunteering, expertise and knowing where and how to tap (weekending April 27^th 2024)

Various themes this weekending; more or probably less connected, I suspect...

Volunteering opportunities at our local library/information community hub have been pondered this week, with some qualms as unpaid volunteers are sought seemingly to supplement what may be an under-staffed/under-funded public service. An opportunity for much-needed income to a family or families, denied?[i]    

‽istis has also been pondering expertise, talking with a friend contemplating retirement but expressing some anxiety about perhaps being a little bit bored in the future. We talked about the many, many charities and not-for-profit organisations that could benefit from the great expertise of someone coming out of a long and successful career in accountancy/tax/financial governance. An opportunity for many people to benefit from expertise shared?

And ‽istis is reminded of a ‘story’ with variations, but one version of which perhaps goes like this:

·         A huge industrial plant grinds to a halt.

·         An engineer is called.

·         Some moments are spent contemplating the problem.

·         A small hammer is produced.

·         A particular component receives a single, small tap - and everything fires up again.

·         An invoice is sent: £1,000.

·         It is challenged: a £1,000 fee for a few moments work?

·         An itemised bill is demanded.

·         Labour: £1.

·         Knowing where to tap: £999

So ‽istis has wondered:  What price - expertise? What value - opportunities to acquire it and share it? To what, where and for what purpose might it be applied?

And two other ‘things’ have made an impression this week and they may be sort of related to the weekending’s themes…

One is to do with lessons from research and a ‘tweet’ or posting on ‘X’ in an always interesting, I reckon, series from Helen Bevan (@HelenBevan: Professor of Practice in Health & Care Improvement at Warwick Business School); near verbatim:

·         Evidence from research @BainandCompany

·         Only 12% of big change programmes produce lasting results.

·         But six ‘good practices’ ideas seem to increase greatly the likelihood of success for large scale change strategies:

1) Treat transformation as a continuous process rather than a discrete programme

2) Build it into the operating rhythm of the organisation

3) Explicitly manage energy for change - sequence changes to avoid widespread organisational fatigue

4) Use aspirations, not benchmarks, to set goals - top-down data driven mandates can crush transformational thinking

5) Adopt a “middle-out”, rather than "top down" approach

6) Allow sufficient funding (in the research, nearly every failed transformation wasn't funded properly)[ii]

And ‽istis wonders how the strategic, operational and ‘in practice’ achievements of a business, a charity, a community, a government or an international initiative might be enhanced by applying these ‘good practices’? What ‘big change’ programmes and processes might benefit from these lessons about where and how to ‘tap’ – including those programmes and processes dominating the news at the moment even those that may have ground to a halt, such as a peace process…‽

The second ‘thing’ also presented itself via social media; a clip from a speech by Deshauna Barber[iii] - beauty pageant titleholder (including Miss USA), motivational speaker, and United States Army Reserve captain:

 “Do not fear failure, but be terrified of regret.”

And ‽istis will continue to wonder, voluntarily, what might happen if such a message were to be taken to heart by those seeking big change through programmes and processes dominating the news at the moment even those that may have ground to a halt, such as a peace process…‽

 ©‽istis

NB: further reflections and comments linked to this week’s theme and past blog entries to be found on X/Twitter with replies, retweets (which don’t necessarily indicate approval, sometimes the very opposite!) and ‘likes’: @Pistis_wonders.  X/Twitter ‘follows’ and respectful comment and dialogue welcome...  

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[i] And ‽istis has long had concerns at the idea of community cafés – often church ones it seems – competing with, maybe under-cutting and taking business away from local enterprises that pay wages, pay suppliers, pay business rates, pay taxes, create jobs, etc.

[ii] https://hbr.org/2024/05/transformations-that-work. Via @HarvardBiz

[iii] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w71aDaGAtHs & https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deshauna_Barber

‽istis ponders version control and roof-reading (weekending April 20th 2024)

 

‽istis ponders version control and roof-reading (weekending April 20^th 2024)

This week ‽istis has been wrestling with amending, updating, re-writing and adding to various documents. The multiple tweaks and re-edits of one’s own ‘stuff’ has been joined by tech-enabled/tech-compexified collaborative editing with others; at a distance; asynchronously; with different styles…

Editing, reviewing, viewing? Comments, replies? Accepted, declined? Auto- save, Save As? Draft v 4, Draft v 23, Final Draft, Final Final Draft, Final Final Draft v 2…‽

And so, this weekending ‽istis is pondering version control and proof-reading and, given some interruptions, is now on ‘v 7’ of this latest blog-offering…

As is often the case when exploring a new-ish topic, a wonderful world of terms has opened up[i]:

·         Dittography: repetition of a word, seemingly following a momentary momentary distraction

·         Homoeoteleuton (various spelling available, deliberate or accidental!): which can lead to copied text missing a section as the scribe goes back to another, later, version of the same word or a similar ending word - and then continues from there

·         Homeoarchy: eye-skip because of the similarity of the beginnings of two lines.

·         Shelf-marking: source text returned to the shelf at the end of a long day; the new manuscript marginalia marked with a source document shelf reference so that it can be found next day; wrong reference; different source text fetched from the stacks; a new hybrid manuscript emerges – a mediaeval mash-up

·         Manuscript descent: and a Darwinian decomposition or recomposition species-tree of manuscripts is traced back across generations of perhaps tired, careless, mischievous, over-worked, underpaid, bored scribes?  

Sins of omission, addition, transposition or alteration may need confession at Matins or Vigils, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext[ii], None, Vespers or Compline…[iii]

So ‽istis got to thinking: what if some of some of[iv] the documents that affect our lives have been miscopied or mis-edited or if it was the non-‘final-final-v-2’ that got signed and sent out in to the world? What if quotations or numbers had been mis-recorded? What might documents or reports of conversations, the declarations or ‘famous’ lines have said differently? What might the records now say if you or I could copy them out again?

·         The last Conservative Party manifesto? (maybe they didn’t actually mean to do these things…?)

·         Shall I compare Thee to a winter’s day…?

·         We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all are equal…[v]

·         Independent Arab and Jewish States and the Special International Regime for the City of Jerusalem, set forth in part III of this plan, shall come into existence in Palestine… in the not-foreseeable-future…[vi]

·         I am just one of the ways, a truth and a light…[vii]

·         I wandered lonely as a sheep…

·         E = mc³

·         48% for leaving the EU, 52% against leaving[viii]

·         “Not guilty”[ix]

·         “I have a nightmare…”[x]

·         For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.[xi]

·         “Houston, everything’s fine!”[xii]

·         “Well actually, I think that’s very funny!” the Queen was reported to have said…[xiii]

…as ever, you might like to ponder and add your own.

How different the written and typed record might not be…‽

You might also care to and wonder and ponder how we know that things are not 'true'... seems to be a pretty crucial question at any then and now... 

[xiv]

©‽istis

NB: further reflections and comments linked to this week’s theme and past blog entries to be found on X/Twitter with replies, retweets (which don’t necessarily indicate approval, sometimes the very opposite!) and ‘likes’: @Pistis_wonders.

X/Twitter ‘follows’ and respectful comment and dialogue welcome...  

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[i] References include: https://faculty.goucher.edu/eng330/how_do_mistakes_enter_manuscript.htm#:~:text=The%20most%20subtle%20kind%20of,excoriate%20in%20marginalia%20lamenting%20their &  https://www.thoughtco.com/homoioteleuton-figure-of-sound-1690933 & https://sites.ualberta.ca/~sreimer/ms-course/course/scbl-err.htm

[ii] (The mischievous scribe might have been tempted to put ‘sex’ here; but that would have been a very different type of service… With apologies; couldn’t resist!)

[iii] https://christdesert.org/prayer/opus-dei/the-eight-daily-prayer-periods/

[iv] Not an example of dittography – that is indeed what I meant to type…

[v] And the world re-calibrates with universal equality and no reliance on an ultimate ‘other’, an external Creator…

[vi] From UN General Assembly Resolution 181: https://web.archive.org/web/20171010090147/https://unispal.un.org/DPA/DPR/unispal.nsf/0/7F0AF2BD897689B785256C330061D253

[vii] John 14 v 6, perhaps at the mercy of an aberrant polytheistic, universalistic monk…

[viii] The UK’s European referendum result, 2016

[ix] Thinking of Socrates and maybe others…  and vice versa…  https://www.bestattorney.com/blog/top-77-most-famous-trials-in-history/

[x] Not Martin Luther King. https://wavebox.io/knowhow/the-50-most-famous-quotes-of-all-time/

[xi] Luke 18 v 25, oh…  hang on, isn’t that what it says‽

[xii] https://www.historyhit.com/famous-misquotes-from-history/

[xiii] Ibid

 [xiv] And as for the missing ‘p’ in the title? Sorry needed a bathroom break…

‽istis wonders why on earth not‽ (weekending April 13th 2024)

 

‽istis wonders why on earth not‽  (weekending April 13^th 2024)

This week ‽istis has completed some work updating policies for a local voluntary organisation:

‘A community-led and optimistic sanctuary which champions local residents, builds community resilience, supports mental health and wellbeing and promotes regenerative farming practices and environmentally friendly living’; which, across 30 acres, ‘creates, maintains, nurtures and protects a species-rich ecosystem of edible, native and useful plants, encouraging biodiversity and a safe space for wildlife and the local community to coexist in harmony.’ It supports ‘local communities to connect with nature through education and volunteering and come together around shared values to work, grow, harvest, learn, play, eat and socialise in a welcoming space.’

‽istis wondered whether this weekending’s topic should be ‘volunteering’, not least given that everyone associated with the particular organisation is a volunteer, but perhaps that topic can be saved until a blog in June when the UK has a Volunteers’ Week[i], or early December which sees International Volunteer Day[ii].

But it was the ‘code of conduct’ for the volunteers and the organisation as a whole that caught ‽istis’ imagination.

Adapted from a ‘code’ proposed by Greenpeace UK[iii], it runs like this:

Respect

We show respect for the environment and for each other. This includes valuing each other’s time, privacy, opinions and personal space. Individuals take personal responsibility for their actions in their ***** role.

Environment

Protecting the environment is one of our core values – we lead by example. This involves avoiding waste (including food waste), using ethical and sustainable products, minimal use of fossil fuels, leaving no trace, not littering, recycling, reusing.

Safe

We nurture a space where every member feels part of the team and feels safe in the ***** environment, both in terms of safe working practices and not feeling intimidated, bullied, victimised, sexually pressured or harassed – whether through word or action.

Peace

As part of the ***** community we demonstrate a positive non-violent, non-aggressive attitude. There is no place for anger or violence in ***** including in our online presence. Temporary conflicts are dealt with calmly and quickly.

Equality

We actively work for every community member to feel included and not discriminated against due to age, gender, being married or in a civil partnership, being pregnant or on maternity leave, disability, race including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation - ‘protected characteristics’ as outlined in the Equality Act 2010 - or any other aspect that could result in their being discriminated against purely because they have such characteristics.

Care

Being part of the **** community means ensuring the well-being of others. This means taking care of each other, supporting each other, being honest with each other and being open to others’ needs. It also means taking care of ***** property, finances, images, messages and reputation.

Trust

Members of ***** community are able to trust one another. They can also trust ***** to provide relevant, timely and appropriate support, resourcing and training.

The '*****' represents the name of the organisation, but ‽istis’ started to imagine how this might read if other communities’ names and places were to appear instead, if those in leadership roles or even all members were to sign up, promote and strive to follow such a code of conduct. So, here’s a proposed thought experiment:

Part 1: with some tweaking of the syntax as necessary, you might like to try filling in the ***** with words like:

·               British

·               European

·               ‘Holy Land’

·               Middle Eastern

·               Russian

·               The Church of England

·               Ukrainian

·               Country’s

·               The Post Office[iv]

·               ‘Soul Survivor’[i]

·               National

•        Sudan

·               UN

·               NATO

·               International

·               Etc, etc, etc…  perhaps including groups and organisations, communities or businesses known to you.

Part 2: perhaps wonder why on earth this might not be something I/you/all of us would sign up to, promote and strive to follow.

Part 3: possibly ponder just how different the world might yet be…   

 ©‽istis

NB: further reflections and comments linked to this week’s theme and past blog entries to be found on X/Twitter with replies, retweets (which don’t necessarily indicate approval, sometimes the very opposite!) and ‘likes’: @Pistis_wonders.

X/Twitter ‘follows’ and respectful comment and dialogue welcome...  

 

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[i] https://volunteersweek.org/

[ii] https://www.un.org/en/observances/volunteer-day

[iii] https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rjtg0vzbq6OMgxtcgQA60gMeXdgBRDdXr9l3-13fdB8/edit

[iv] For those in the UK who continue to be shocked by the revelations about this institution. Many references including more headlines this week, but perhaps see  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56718036 for an introduction.

 

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[i] https://gracetruth.blog/2024/04/09/let-there-be-light-matt-beth-redman-on-mike-pilavachi/

‽istis ponders pilgrims, stereotypes and caricatures‽ (weekending April 6th 2024)

 

‽istis ponders pilgrims, stereotypes and caricatures‽ (weekending April 6^th 2024)

This week ‽istis has watched the BBC’s programme ‘Pilgrimage’[i], the latest of six seasons of modern pilgrims taking roads more or less travelled[ii]: to Santiago and Rome, to Istanbul and the Scottish Isles, through Portugal and now through North Wales. It has become, perhaps, a bit of an Easter tradition.

So, this year, seven (the perfect number?) ‘well-known personalities commit to an immersive experience’ - going on a pilgrimage, which the opening sequence tells us can be ‘renewing and transformative’. They are ‘following the North Wales Pilgrims’ Way, a path linked by churches and echoing tales of long-forgotten Celtic early Christian saints.’

Alongside ‘casting’ criteria that may include: amiable travelling companion, entertaining, interesting and interested (‽istis’ favourite qualities perhaps), engaging, slightly quirky and unusual, being a character, being up for it, willing to muck in and enter in to the spirit of the programme – the faith or lack of it is an obvious key link. Descriptions of the pilgrims across the six series include: humanism, lapsed Catholic, Muslim, Anglican, Jain, Presbyterian, atheist, Jewish, non-practising Muslim, agnostic, Sikh, pagan, born-again Pentecostal Christian, non-observant Jewish, faith in the natural world, questioning Evangelical Christian, non-religious, Catholic convert and areligious.

Leaving aside the interest and entertainment wrought through

·         exclamations of wonder and/or discomfort

·         more or less guarded or unguarded personal revelations

·         more or less likely or unlikely bourgeoning friendships

·         giggles and niggles (sorry, a rhyme not to be missed)

·         smiles and tears

·         jolly japes and jokes

·         snorings, wailings and thunderclaps

·         cod philosophy

·         glimpses of genuineness and authenticity

·         expressions of care and compassion

·         more or less revelatory insights

this year’s pilgrimage has led ‽istis to much pondering about stereotyping and caricaturing not least of ‘well-known personalities’ (a stand-up comedian, a wildlife presenter, an actor, a TV personality and former model, someone who ‘shot to fame on an entertainment show’, a journalist and TV presenter, a reality star and business person) and some of the people that they met on the journey: a bishop, a pioneer priest, overnight stopping places hosts, a vicar, a retreat builder, a spiritual leader, a lama, the Bardsey Island wise ferryman, a vicar who ‘got us - what a dude’…

The ’actor’ (as well as treating us all to a rendition of part of a Gerard Manley Hopkins’ epic and pertinent poem[iii] delivered in freezing well waters!) started the train of thought early on in the programme - worried that a wonderful moment of communing with a worm or with the Holy Spirit may be interrupted by a reality star’s “What you looking at?” But it was one pilgrim who perhaps seemed to both confirm and challenge some of ‽istis’ own stereotyping and caricaturing tendencies:

·         The Eton attending schoolboy. The legacy? Memories of a ‘religious vibe’ (but left thinking that Jesus was a fictitious character in which you either believed or didn’t? ”Jesus Christ definitely existed?” Ep.1 c. 38’) and a capacity to cope with a ‘minging’ climbing hut that “takes me straight back to school.”

·         The son of a father who had little tolerance for weakness – perhaps not unconnected to being a son who found it difficult to express any fear or emotion? And also perhaps not unconnected to becoming the ultra-marathon running brother of an Everest climber; someone able to disassociate from the discomfort?

·         The mantra-proclaimer:

o   “Discomfort is key. Comfort is a killer. Push through the pain. Push on up the hill. Never stop. Never fear. Move forward at all times.” (Ep.2 c. 09’50”)

o   “Remember one foot in front of the other. Head down. We will get there. Do not be demoralised.” (Ep.3 c.34’40”)

o   “Yes of course you need to be tested.” “For what reason?” “You can’t go through life untested and unchallenged!” (Ep.2 c.14’30”)

·         The practical joker: perhaps testing the boundary between jolly jape v could-be-construed-as-bullying (even in the interests of televisual comedy in the middle of a serious programme):

o   dragging a ‘fellow pilgrim’ under a branch (Ep.1. c.41’28”) “He’s alright, he needs to build resilience!”

o   top of Snowdon fear of heights “What if I hold you?” followed by one of those oh so funny, fake pushings towards the edge (Ep.2 c.40’22”)

o   a ‘set-piece’ which may have been planned/consensual, but which nevertheless (Ep.3. 42’23”) went like this: “What are you doing down there, mate?” “I’m just relaxing.”  “There’s no time for that.” “We need to get you up.” The offered hand, the pull up, the push forward and a face in the sand…   

·         The asker of profound questions: (Ep.2 c. 12’09”) asking what would you call a hybrid of, kind of, just people of faith, who are spiritual, who aren’t in a particular lane? Why do you need to pick a lane?  What does that make you, a citizen of the world?

·         The inspirer (Ep.2 c.56’), the genuine hand-holder and helper Ep.3 c.57’)    

Meanwhile, back to those more or less revelatory insights... For this year’s pilgrims there definitely seemed to have been some: about themselves and others; about faith and belief; new or renewed thoughts, feelings and perhaps even behaviour - ways of being and doing that may last into the future, that may even renew and transform the ‘back to the every day’.

‽ The notion of ‘thin places’ (where the barrier between heaven and earth seems thinner’; where perhaps past, present and future merge; where heaven and earth may whisper a greeting) seemed to resonate for many. ‽istis also wondered about ‘thin times’ and ‘thin relationships’. Maybe a glimpse of the most precious revelation was given in the many moments of interest and interestingness, of friendship, of listening, of compassion, of kindness, of genuineness and authenticity, of caring, of a group or team becoming a shared and bigger ‘us’?). And there was the recognition of the potential value of seeking a ‘ponder spot’…

‽ Remembering that life comes and goes but that the mountains are always there[iv], that when encompassed in “a duvet of sadness, each step I take I feel more grounded to the earth and I can cope better.” (Ep.2 c. 36’10”)

‽ The potential OK-ness and value of moving on, of holding on to some things but not being held back.

‽ That maybe there is a way not to be scared of death any more. (Ep. 3 c. 30’)

‽ The value of living and not just existing. (Ep.3 c. 58’)

‽ That maybe ‘heaven is here, right now, with us together.’ (Ep.2 c. 11’45”)

‽ The idea of life itself as a journey or pilgrimage (Ep.3 c. 30’)…

And ‽istis is grateful for the ‘pilgrims’ and the shared internal and external landscapes in which they travelled, for those they met on the way and for all those involved in making the programme.  ‽istis hopes that series seven is in the planning stages and that some listeners and watchers may even be preparing for their own pilgrimage or realising afresh that they just perhaps, possibly, may be actually on the road right now - wherever, whenever and whatsoever…

©‽istis

NB: further reflections and comments linked to this week’s theme and past blog entries to be found on X/Twitter with replies, retweets (which don’t necessarily indicate approval, sometimes the very opposite!) and ‘likes’: @Pistis_wonders.

X/Twitter ‘follows’ and respectful comment and dialogue welcome...  

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[i] https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/b09w7lc0/pilgrimage

[ii] Following: Camino de Santiago, Via Francigena to the Vatican, the Sultans Trail to Istanbul, the  Hiberno-Scottish mission and the Fatima Way, the North (Wales) Pilgrim’s Way.

[iii] ‘Here to this holy well shall pilgrimages be,

And not from purple Wales only nor from elmy England,

But from beyond seas, Erin, France and Flanders, everywhere,

Pilgrims, still pilgrims, móre pílgrims, still more poor pilgrims.’ https://www.poetrynook.com/poem/st-winefreds-well

[iv] Thank you Micheala Strachan and EH!