• Masarie's on May 15th--Getting Ready  April, 30, 2005
  • This was an email sent to folks who were coming and had signed up for a sharing time.
• Masarie's on May 15th--Touching Base  April, 30, 2005
  • This was an email sent to folks who were coming and we hadn't heard if they wanted to be scheduled for a sharing time.
• Masarie's on May 15th--A gentle reminder April 30,2005
  • This was a gentle reminder sent out to folks who we hadn't heard back from yet.
• Masarie's on May 15th--Preliminary Schedule April 30,2005
  • This was the first version of the schedule
• Masarie's on the 15th--Taking Shape April 22 2005
  • This was the third email that was sent out
• Masarie's on May 15th--Second Installment April 15 2005
  • This was the second email that was sent out.
• Please join us for a different kind of open house April 8 2005
  • This was the first email that was sent out.

Getting Ready--April 30, 2005

Greetings,

First, we would like to thank all of you who have already committed to sharing something about which you are passionate. There are some great learning opportunities in store for us all as well as some fun, creativity, and connection.

Next, we would like to reiterate our vision for the day. To create a safe place:

• for us all to celebrate and share our passions.
• to be curious and supportive of folks who have stepped up to share their passions
• to do things differently than we might normally do them.
• where we feel comfortable to stretch ourselves, move a bit out of our comfort zone, or climb completely out of the box!
• to learn something new
• to create something new
• to meet new people
• to make connections
• to create some structure for the day yet stay open to spontaneity

Checklist

Please review your schedule entry and make sure the name, brief description, amount of time, and time slot are OK. Please let us know of any changes you have. Please feel free to even change your topic if after reflection you have been inspired to do something else. Or something in addition. The day is a work in progress.

• Send your favorite quote to share
• Send in your favorite movie and book suggestions with an optional short reason why you like them. We will collate the list and share with all.
• Start making a pile of clothes that you are willing to part with and would like to contribute to the Clothing Exchange. You could go home with some great “new” clothes.
• Start making a pile of the books that you are willing to part with.
• Start making a pile of the magazines that you are willing to part with and bring to share with others.
• Bring a drum or other percussion instrument. Please let us know what you have and what you would be willing to bring to share. We will have a drumming time for all who want to join in. Make sure that you put your name on it.

More about your Sharing

In order to make the day work, we will have to keep on a reasonable time schedule. We would like you to make sure that you have given yourself enough time but not so much time that you might not be able to keep up the energy to mesmerize the folks who have shown up to share in your passion. They might be saying to themselves, “gee, I don’t know anything about, for example, rock polishing, and I would like to hear Bill get me excited about rock polishing. I will hang out as long at I am interested. That may be 10 minutes, unless I am so captivated then I might stay longer.” It is our contention that if you are sharing something that you are truly passionate about, you can keep anyone’s attention for 10 minutes. Think about how you can spin your story. The people who show up may not know anything about your area of passion. You might want to think about it as “My Passion for Dummies”, i.e., be prepared to speak without jargon and bring folks along for the ride at a pace that is comfortable for them. Assume that curious people might interrupt you with questions. With all that said, there is no “right” way to do it. However, you engage with folks will be great. We are available if you want to someone to bounce some ideas off.

Other random stuff…

We want anyone who wants to join us on May 15th to do so. That means that if you have a friend who you think would love to engage, feel free to share the emails with them. Our only request is that you have your friend contact us directly so that we can work with them on their sharing and keep track of RSVP’s. Or you can simply send us their email address and we will send them a little intro email along with the previous emails.

More quotes that we have received

• The lost child cries, but still he catches fireflies--Ryushui Yoshida
• We teach who we are--Parker Palmer
• If you spend a lot of time looking outside of the box, you will find a way to put much more into the box--Bill Gill
• Only the empty hand is free to hold--anon
• The real voyage of discovery is not in seeing new places, but in having new eyes--anon
• The most common mistake in communication is the belief that it has happened--anon
• You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club--Jack London
• Things that matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least—Goethe
• If not now, when? If not me, who?--Hillel

Again, we want to thank you all for being some of the first people to step up. The day will be great in large part to the energy that you bring (and have already put forth.)

With love,
Chip and Kathy

Touching Base--April 30, 2005

Greetings,

We are really glad that you are going to join us on May 15^th. After you review the preliminary schedule, we hope you will find that there are some great learning opportunities in store for us all as well as some fun, creativity, and connection. One of the purposes of this week’s email is to encourage you if you are leaning towards sharing something to take the next step and commit.

Next, we would like to reiterate our vision for the day. To create a safe place:

1. for us all to celebrate and share our passions.
2. To be curious and supportive of folks who have stepped up to share their passions
3. to do things differently than we might normally do them.
4. where we feel comfortable to stretch ourselves, move a bit out of our comfort zone, or climb completely out of the box!
5. to learn something new
6. to create something new
7. to meet new people
8. to make connections
9. to create some structure for the day yet stay open to spontaneity

Why you might have not yet signed up to share something….

So, I am sitting here trying to figure out what is going through your mind right now. When people don’t tell me what they are thinking, I try to fill in the blanks. So here goes, my projections about what things might be keeping you from stepping up.

1. I hate making commitments.---you know, I sometimes hate making commitments too. In fact, I was petrified to send out the first email inviting you to this event.  I knew that after you read it, I was committed to making it happen. There is a quote that I heard over the past year that was really a wake-up call: “How I (we) do anything is how I (we) do everything.”
2. I just want to show up and watch-—kind of like Chauncey Gardiner, Peter Seller’s character, in the 1979 film “Being There” when he calmly stated that “I like to watch.” If watching is a pattern for you, I would just encourage you, in the spirit of the day, to do things differently and step up to sharing something. You know, it doesn’t have to be elaborate. But it does have to be something that you are passionate about. I truly believe that your passion will be contagious and infect others.
3. No one wants to hear about my rock collection. What if no one shows up?—-If your rock collection is what nourishes your soul and keeps you entertained for hours, I’ll bet that if you show up with that enthusiasm, you will be giving a gift to others. There will be lots of things going on during the day and people may be torn between two sharings. That is only natural. If only one person shows up to receive your sharing gift, they will feel very special. If no one shows up, come grab me because I have an unquenchable curiousity and want to support each and every one of you for your courage and commitment to making the day happen.
4. I don’t have anything that I am passionate about-—next……I don’t believe it. You might not be able to play the saxophone or name all of the capitals of the world or drawing a portrait that actually looks like your subject. But think about the times during the day when you can easily get lost in what you are doing. It might be when your reading, cooking, day dreaming, driving around, out walking, and at work. Many of us are passionate about our families. However, instead of bring pictures to share of your grandkids or telling a story about your last Thanksgiving family gathering, maybe you want to talk about what you think are the qualities that have made your experience as a grandparent (or parent) successful to you. I am really trying hard not to make suggestions. I want this to come from your heart.
5. I am trying to figure out what people might want to hear about—actually, I have spent a good part of my life trying to figure out what other people want. It is really tiring and I often don’t get it right. I would encourage you to focus on what you want to get out of the day and what you want to share because you are passionate about it. I kind of have the Field of Dreams attitude about the sharings, and have re-written the famous quote from the movie, “If you build it (commit 100% to sharing something you are passionate about), they will come (and be so grateful to you for enriching their experience.)
6. I won’t come if you are going to force me to sign-up for something—I know that I have been kind of pushy on this issue. However, we want to let you know our priorities in descending order. Number one, we want you to join us. Whatever that level of involvement is. As I mentioned in an earlier email, just showing up is a stretch for many of you and we want to applaud you for that. Number two, we want to maximize the chance that you will have fun. Number three, we want to provide you with a safe place to share what you love but only if you want. You know there will be plenty of times for spontaneous sharing during the day if you change your mind.

So if any of these projections resonate with you, we hope that we have provided you with a different perspective to help you overcome whatever resistance you are experiencing and make a commitment to share. We look forward to hearing from you soon, so we can incorporate your sharing into the day’s evolving schedule. Please let us know if we can support you in any way.  When you send us an email with your sharing event, please remember to provide: a name, a brief description, how much time you want, and what part of the day you would like to be scheduled.

Other random stuff

We want anyone who wants to join us on May 15^th to do so. That means that if you have a friend who you think would love to engage, feel free to share the emails with them. Our only request is that you have your friend contact us directly so that we can work with them on their sharing and keep track of RSVP’s. Or you can simply send us their email address and we will send them a little intro email along with the previous emails.

Checklist

1. Make the decision to participate and let us know.
2. Decide what you want to share and send it to cmasarie@comcast.net. Please include a name for the sharing, a brief description, if you have any special space requirements, and how much time you would like.
3. Send your favorite quote to share
4. Send in your favorite movie and book suggestions with an optional short reason why you like them. We will collate the list and share with all.
5. Start making a pile of clothes that you are willing to part with and would like to contribute to the Clothing Exchange. You could go home with some great “new” clothes.
6. Start making a pile of the books that you are willing to part with.
7. Start making a pile of the magazines that you are willing to part with and bring to share with others.
8. Bring a drum or other percussion instrument. Please let us know what you have and what you would be willing to bring to share. We will have a drumming time for all who want to join in. Make sure that you put your name on it.

More quotes that we have received

• The lost child cries, but still he catches fireflies--Ryushui Yoshida
• We teach who we are--Parker Palmer
<
• If you spend a lot of time looking outside of the box, you will find a way to put much more into the box--Bill Gill
• Only the empty hand is free to hold--anon
• The real voyage of discovery is not in seeing new places, but in having new eyes--anon
• The most common mistake in communication is the belief that it has happened--anon
• You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club--Jack London
• Things that matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least—Goethe
• If not now, when? If not me, who?--Hillel

Carpe diem!

With love,
Chip and Kathy

A Gentle Reminder--April 30, 2005

Greetings,

Our May 15^th event is just over two weeks away. We have not heard from you yet as to whether you will join us or not. We have included some stuff in this week’s email to hopefully help you make a decision. We would really appreciate a head count for the event as there are some logistics that will depend on number of folks coming.

Our guess is that many of you either:

1. want to come but are feeling stuck about what to share or are just plain scared. If this fits you, please read the section below—“Why you might have not yet signed up to share something….”
2. have decided to come but just haven’t gotten around to sending an RSVP.
3. have already decided that there is no way in hell that you are going to show up
4. waiting for a better offer to show up/want to keep my options open for the day
5. have lost the emails among 350 more urgent message
6. have three soccer games and a piano recital that day and are still trying to figure out if there is some time when you can sneak over for a bit during the day.

If you fall into any of the categories above and believe that you have enough information now to commit one way or the other, we would encourage you to do it. Our feelings will not be hurt if, for whatever reason, this event does not work for you. Part of the intention of the day is for us all to step up and claim what we want (as well as what we don’t want.) We look forward to hearing from you. As always, if you have any questions, please send us an email at cmasarie@comcast.net and we will respond promptly.

Please review the preliminary schedule. If you want to participate in the day at any level (or not), please let us know. There are some great learning opportunities in store for us all as well as some fun, creativity, and connection.

Next, we would like to reiterate our vision for the day. To create a safe place:

1. for us all to celebrate and share our passions.
2. to be curious and supportive of folks who have stepped up to share their passions
3. to do things differently than we might normally do them.
<
4. where we feel comfortable to stretch ourselves, move a bit out of our comfort zone, or climb completely out of the box!
<
5. to learn something new
6. to create something new
7. to meet new people
8. to make connections
9. to create some structure for the day yet stay open to spontaneity

So, I am sitting here trying to figure out what is going through your mind right now. When people don’t tell me what they are thinking, I try to fill in the blanks. So here goes, my projections about what things might be keeping you from stepping up.

1. I hate making commitments.---you know, I sometimes hate making commitments too. In fact, I was petrified to send out the first email inviting you to this event.  I knew that after you read it, I was committed to making it happen. There is a quote that I heard over the past year that was really a wake-up call: “How I (we) do anything is how I (we) do everything.”
2. I just want to show up and watch-—kind of like Chauncey Gardiner, Peter Seller’s character, in the 1979 film “Being There” when he calmly stated that “I like to watch.” If watching is a pattern for you, I would just encourage you, in the spirit of the day, to do things differently and step up to sharing something. You know, it doesn’t have to be elaborate. But it does have to be something that you are passionate about. I truly believe that your passion will be contagious and infect others.
3. No one wants to hear about my rock collection. What if no one shows up?—-If your rock collection is what nourishes your soul and keeps you entertained for hours, I’ll bet that if you show up with that enthusiasm, you will be giving a gift to others. There will be lots of things going on during the day and people may be torn between two sharings. That is only natural. If only one person shows up to receive your sharing gift, they will feel very special. If no one shows up, come grab me because I have an unquenchable curiousity and want to support each and every one of you for your courage and commitment to making the day happen.
4. I don’t have anything that I am passionate about-—next……I don’t believe it. You might not be able to play the saxophone or name all of the capitals of the world or drawing a portrait that actually looks like your subject. But think about the times during the day when you can easily get lost in what you are doing. It might be when your reading, cooking, day dreaming, driving around, out walking, and at work. Many of us are passionate about our families. However, instead of bring pictures to share of your grandkids or telling a story about your last Thanksgiving family gathering, maybe you want to talk about what you think are the qualities that have made your experience as a grandparent (or parent) successful to you. I am really trying hard not to make suggestions. I want this to come from your heart.
5. I am trying to figure out what people might want to hear about—actually, I have spent a good part of my life trying to figure out what other people want. It is really tiring and I often don’t get it right. I would encourage you to focus on what you want to get out of the day and what you want to share because you are passionate about it. I kind of have the Field of Dreams attitude about the sharings, and have re-written the famous quote from the movie, “If you build it (commit 100% to sharing something you are passionate about), they will come (and be so grateful to you for enriching their experience.)
6. I won’t come if you are going to force me to sign-up for something—I know that I have been kind of pushy on this issue. However, we want to let you know our priorities in descending order. Number one, we want you to join us. Whatever that level of involvement is. As I mentioned in an earlier email, just showing up is a stretch for many of you and we want to applaud you for that. Number two, we want to maximize the chance that you will have fun. Number three, we want to provide you with a safe place to share what you love but only if you want. You know there will be plenty of times for spontaneous sharing during the day if you change your mind.

So if any of these projections resonate with you, we hope that we have provided you with a different perspective to help you overcome whatever resistance you are experiencing and make a commitment to share. We look forward to hearing from you soon, so we can incorporate your sharing into the day’s evolving schedule. Please let us know if we can support you in any way.  When you send us an email with your sharing event, please remember to provide: a name, a brief description, how much time you want, and what part of the day you would like to be scheduled.

Other random stuff

We want anyone who wants to join us on May 15^th to do so. That means that if you have a friend who you think would love to engage, feel free to share the emails with them. Our only request is that you have your friend contact us directly so that we can work with them on their sharing and keep track of RSVP’s. Or you can simply send us their email address and we will send them a little intro email along with the previous emails.

Checklist

1. Make the decision to participate and let us know.
2. Decide what you want to share and send it to cmasarie@comcast.net. Please include a name for the sharing, a brief description, if you have any special space requirements, and how much time you would like.
3. Send your favorite quote to share
4. Send in your favorite movie and book suggestions with an optional short reason why you like them. We will collate the list and share with all.
5. Start making a pile of clothes that you are willing to part with and would like to contribute to the Clothing Exchange. You could go home with some great “new” clothes.
6. Start making a pile of the books that you are willing to part with.
7. Start making a pile of the magazines that you are willing to part with and bring to share with others.
8. Bring a drum or other percussion instrument. Please let us know what you have and what you would be willing to bring to share. We will have a drumming time for all who want to join in. Make sure that you put your name on it.

More quotes that we have received

• The lost child cries, but still he catches fireflies--Ryushui Yoshida
• We teach who we are--Parker Palmer
<
• If you spend a lot of time looking outside of the box, you will find a way to put much more into the box--Bill Gill
• Only the empty hand is free to hold--anon
• The real voyage of discovery is not in seeing new places, but in having new eyes--anon
• The most common mistake in communication is the belief that it has happened--anon
• You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club--Jack London
• Things that matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least—Goethe
• If not now, when? If not me, who?--Hillel

Carpe diem!

With love,
Chip and Kathy

Preliminary Schedule--April 30, 2005

Greetings,

We are very excited about the upcoming May 15^th event at our house. Here is the first crack at a schedule for the day. We have still to hear from a lot of folks who want to share something so it will be a work in progress. Comments/questions/concerns are welcome as always. Please note that we did not schedule eating time. Food will be out all day with higher concentrations around meal times.

With love,
Chip and Kathy

P.S. If your email system does not handle HTML, i.e., the schedule is a real mess, just let us know and we will send you the Word document as an attachment.

When	What	What more	Who
7:00-8:00 am	Reading, coffee, Mozart and bagels by the fire	Bring your favorite newspaper(s) or magazines to share
7:30-8:00 am	Morning Meditation	A great way to start the morning	Facilitated by Corby Ward
8:00-8:30 am	Morning Check-in	Chance to say what’s up right now and share expectations for the day (max 2 minutes each)	Facilitated by Chip Masarie
9:00-9:30 am	Fuse Glass for your 'Fridge	make a magnet to hold your precious art/photos/love notes, etc.	Carol Routh
9:00-9:30 am	Putting Together a Home Video	We will quickly throw together a little video and edit it to demystify the process. Some basic film-making techniques will be revealed.	Chip Masarie
9:00-9:30 am	Restorative Justice	an older and more basic form of justice that prevailed in the British Isles before the Norman conquest.  Its objective is to restore the wrongdoer to the role of a constructive citizen rather than to wreak vengeance on him/her.	Peter Serrell
9:30-10:00 am	Popsicle Stick Calligraphy Nib	Learn how to cut a functional nib out of a popsicle stick and explore freeform calligraphy using inks and watercolors with your new nib.  Popsicle sticks, art knives, inks, paper and watercolors will be provided.	Rebecca Gee
9:30-10:00 am	Yes, You Can Be Creative in a Half Hour	Come play with Libby	Libby Masarie
9:30-9:45 pm	Dungeons and Dragons	Come find out what all the mystery is about. I played it when I was in high school, and now play with my kids and their friends	Dave Gonzalez
10:10-10:30 am	Morning Advocacy	Come prepared to advocate for whatever you want for 1 minute	Facilitated by Chip Masarie
10:30-11:00 am	Marshall Rosenberg’s Non-Violent Communication	Technique for creating empathic communication based on examining feelings and needs	Kathy Masarie
10:30-11:00 am	Mystery of Watercolor Revealed	How to create the effects you want in watercolor	Fred Masarie
11:00-11:30 am	Poetry reading, etc.	A time to bring your favorites to share	Leah Stenson, Mary Ruhl, and others
11:00-noon	Make Your Own Greeting Cards	take two separate styles  you have made with you.  A Make-n-take	Lynn Barnes
11:00 am – 2 pm	Fairy Furniture	Create whimsical pieces of miniature furniture using twigs, dried flowers and moss.  A way to relax and spend time with nature.  No skill required; anything you make guaranteed to be beautiful! It will not take you 3 hours to do this. Just stop by and play.	Bonnie Ward
11:30-noon	Paddling	Getting out on the water	Barb Cobb
Noon-1 pm	Jim Pepper "Pepper PowWow" video	A tribute to the musical and cultural legacy of Jim Pepper, a contemporary Native American jazz musician..  Peppers music is realized as mystery, magic and wonder by the compelling and powerful narrative quality of the documentary	Facilitated by Lynn McClenahan
1:00-1:30 pm	Starting a Meditation Practice	a practical and comfortable lesson in the technique of meditation; focusing on breathing, concentration and relaxation.  For all levels - beginners to veterans	Corby Ward
1:30-2:00 pm	Plate Painting	Come create a work of art to eat off of. There will be a small charge to cover the cost of the plates.	Barb Cobb
1:30-1:45 pm	Demystifying a Men’s Group	Sharing my experience being actively involved in a men’s group for 8 years	Chip Masarie
1:45 – 2:00 pm	Speak Italian in 10 minutes	Come learn a couple of handfuls of useful Italian phrases. Remember, you can’t keep holding them in your hands because you need your hands free to speak Italian. Geared toward the language impaired.	Chip Masarie
2:00-3:00 pm	Afternoon Drumming	Bring something you can shake, beat or otherwise abuse. Feel free to engage and disengage as you are moved
2:00-2:30pm	Weight training in your own home		Kathy Masarie
2:30-3:00 pm	New Games (of the 70's!!)	Everybody plays and everybody wins- spontaneous silliness and creativity welcome- so who knows what we will make of the moment?	Sally Stevens
3:00-3:30 pm	Afternoon Advocacy	Come prepared to advocate for whatever you want for 1 minute—come advocate for something else if you already did this in the morning	Facilitated by Chip Masarie
3:30-4:00 pm	Energy Fields In and Around Us	a 30 minute crash course on the power of intention	Jane Blackman
4:00-5:00 pm	Hamlet reading	a re-enactment of a Shakespeare play or act.  We do have a pared down version of Macbeth which has most of the characters in the original, with mostly original language, but much shorter, complete with costumes, swords, and crowns	Dave Sanders and Lisa Reynolds
4:30-5:00 pm	Birds in My Backyard	Ever wondered what those birds singing or flitting around your yard really are?  This is your opportunity to put a name and see a close up on them	Rosie Hamilton
5:00-5:10 pm	How does she do it?	a child's card trick	Sally Stevens
5:15 – 5:45 pm	Group check-in	What’s goin’ on for you? Come share what the day has stirred up for you.	Facilitated by Chip Masarie
6:00-6:30 pm	Sing-along	If you have a Rise Up Singing songbook, please bring it. If you want to lead a specific song, please bring the words for folks
6:00-6:30 pm	Improv Warmup and Story	Come loosen up those inhibitions. Be prepared for some serious fun. We will also play a Theater Game called Story which is all about staying in the moment and accepting gifts	Facilitated by Chip Masarie
6:30-7:30 pm	Spontaneous Sharing	Sign up during the day or be spontaneous when there is an open slot (1-5 minutes)	Facilitated by Chip Masarie
7:10-7:30 pm	An Nascent Idea for a Vacant Lot	Come help brainstorm a Farmer's/Art Market in the vacant Dick Hanna car lot at 85th and Canyon Rd. I want to create space that is community enhancing amidst the eyesores.	Mary Ruhl
7:30-8:00 pm	Mental Meaderings		Don Bahams
7:30-8:00 pm	Evening Meditation	Quiet time.	Corby Ward
8:00-11 pm	Hot tubbing	Bring your own towel and suit
8:00-8:20 pm	Evening Advocacy	Come prepared to advocate for whatever you want for 1 minute—come advocate for something else if you already did this earlier	Facilitated by Chip Masarie
8:30-9:30 pm	Evening Drumming	Bring something you can shake, beat or otherwise abuse. Feel free to engage and disengage as you are moved
8:30-9:30 pm	Paper Bag Theater	Divide into teams. Each team secretly puts 5-6 items in a paper bag all of which must be used by another team in a 5-10 minute skit. Please feel free to bring a “special” item from home if you want.	Facilitated by Chip masarie
9:30-11:00 pm	Movie Time	Movie has yet to be selected---What the Bleep…?. Popcorn provided
All day	No talking quiet room	This is a place for reading and recharging
All day	Game Room	Lots of games will be there. If you want a specific game, ask us. We might have it. Otherwise you can bring it. Sign up sheets will be available for folks to organize times for specific games.
All day	Book and Magazine Exchange	Drop off books and magazines that you are willing to part with and pick up great new reading material
All day	Clothing Exchange	Drop off clothes that you (or your family members) are willing to part with and come away with a new wardrobe
All day	Connections board	Come put up a notice/sign-up sheet to find like minded folks for forming a book group, gourmet club, hiking, etc.

Taking shape--April 22, 2005

Greetings,

Many of you (included me) have wondered, what will the day (May 15^th at the Masaries) look like? Well, thanks to you all, the day is starting to take shape. As you can see below, we have already had a number of folks stepping up to committing to sharing something that day. It is my hope that this will inspire the rest of you who want to come to say to yourselves, “what do I really love to do/think about and how might I share that passion with others.” I have been very careful not to make suggestions to folks because I want it to come from your own passions (not those that I project on you!)  However, I will be happy to work through ideas with you via email.

How the day is shaping up

Things will be going on most of the time. There will be some times when we will have a break from individual sharing and have some group activities. For example, three times during the day, we will have a time for you to advocate for whatever you want for 1 minute (and we are strict about the time.) This is really a great activity that we were introduced to through our work at Wings in Eugene.

There will also be time for Spontaneous sharing. The intent here is that this would be in addition to your intentional sharing (that you sign up for in advance.) This will be for those inspirations that hit you during the day. There will be a sign up sheet and various times during the day when we will have time for this.

We believe that the house has enough nooks and crannies that we can have multiple activities going on at the same time (well, maybe not meditation and drumming). There will be:

1. A quiet place---a no-talking reading and meditation room. Lots of books and magazines will be available.
2. Clothing Exchange room—open all day for you to drop off and find those treasures to take with you.
3. Book/Magazine Exchange room—open all day
4. Large group activity room—this is where we will do Advocacy, Spontaneous Sharing, Paper Bag Theater, and other such nonsense.
5. Food room—food and juice available all day
6. Game room---we have more games than you could play in a lifetime. If there is a game that you are particularly interested in playing, first ask to see if we have it. We might. If not, feel free to bring it. We will have a sign-up sheet in the game room for people to pick times to play certain games together.

Another purpose of the day is to facilitate the creation of connections between folks. There will be a sign-up board for people who want to find like minded people for a book club, gourmet group, movie group, hiking group….you get the idea. You simply will write your idea up on the board and everyone will be encouraged to check it out and make their desired connections.

Remember you can choose to participate (or not). There will be lots of other places for you to hang out.

Checklist

• Make the decision to participate and let us know.
• Decide what you want to share and send it to cmasarie@comcast.net. Please include a name for the sharing, a brief description, if you have any special space requirements, and how much time you would like.
• Send your favorite quote to share
• Send in your favorite movie and book suggestions with an optional short reason why you like them. We will collate the list and share with all.
• Start making a pile of clothes that you are willing to part with and would like to contribute to the Clothing Exchange. You could go home with some great “new” clothes.
• Start making a pile of the books that you are willing to part with.
• Start making a pile of the magazines that you are willing to part with and bring to share with others.
• Do you have a drum or other percussion instrument to bring? Please let us know what you have and what you would be willing to bring to share. We will have a drumming time for all who want to join in.
• Please make sure that your name is on everything that you bring---and want to take home with you!

More quotes that we have received

• What would you do if you knew you would not fail?—anon
• If you never cease to wonder, wonders will never cease—anon
• I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I have just lived the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well.—Diane Ackerman
• Don’t forget to talk to strangers. -- William Stafford’s advice to his children
• It's not whether you fall down, it's whether you get back up—anon
• Do what you love, you'll love what you do-- Jerome Holdst
• To choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation-- Yann Martel, Life of Pi
• Your greatest strength is often your greatest weakness—anon
• You find time for the things that are important to you—anon
• Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well—Voltaire
• An optimist expects the winds, a pessimist complains about the lack of them and a realist adjusts the sails!-- stolen from somewhere
• Not all treasure is silver and gold mate!-- Captain Jack Sparrow
• Do not pray for an easy life, pray to be a strong person.-- anon
• Winter never fails to turn into spring.-- Nichiren Daishonin
• I have ceased to question stars and books; I have begun to listen to the teachings my blood whispers to me.—Herman Hesse
• The most important thing she'd learned over the years was that there was no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one.-- Jill Churchill
• Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them you're a mile away and you have their shoes.—anon
• To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of the arts.—Henry David Thoreau

Sharing

Well, as you can see, the day is starting to take shape. Please let us know if you have any questions or comments. We are very excited about people getting together and being very intentional about creating connection and community through the sharing of our passions.

Keep those cards and letters coming!

With love,

Chip and Kathy

Second Installment--April 15, 2005

Greetings,

We thought that it would be helpful to provide some answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding the event that we are holding at our house on Sunday May 15^th. We really appreciate the enthusiastic support that we have already received from many of you. We realize that any date that we choose will involve conflicts for folks, but we appreciate the moral support from those that will not be able to participate.

Quotes we have received so far

• Even monkeys fall out of trees---a Japanese proverb
• Go out on a limb; it's where the fruit is.----anon
• Do you show your power by pushing up or pushing down? ---anon
• Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person. –Mother Teresa
• My message is my life---Gandhi

FAQs

I am not creative. Can you give me some ideas of what I can share?

• Learn to speak 10 phrases in Chinese
• Singing harmony in 15 minutes
• How to set up a website
• A day in the life of a trial lawyer
• Setting up an herb garden
• Basic principles of video production
• Yoga for dummies
• Learn calligraphy in 5 minutes
• Non-violent communication—bring a real life situation to work with
• What it's like to volunteer at the Food Bank
• Jazz appreciation
• How to pick the right digital camera to buy
• Get over your fear of the piano
• My morning practice
• How to cook with what is in the kitchen without recipes.
• Stamp collecting for non-nurds (are there really any out there?—non-nurds not stamp collectors)

Do I have to share something?

Do I have to come for the whole day?

What can I bring?

What about food?

This sounds scary. I don’t think that I’ll come. Why should I?

So I encourage those of you who have been thinking about committing to let us know (cmasarie@comcast.net). Those of you who have committed, please let us know if you have decided what you would like to share. If you want to brainstorm, I am happy to work with you. We all have passions.

Those of you who have already said that you will not be able to join us, you can participate if you want by sharing your favorite quote or whatever you’d like.

Preparation

• Send us a quote that inspires you
• Start gathering together those clothes and books that you are willing to part with to bring for a clothing/book exchange.
• Think about what you would like to share. Please let us know: how long you want 1-30 minutes; what you would like to share; any special space requirements; and, what part of the day you would like to be scheduled.

We are putting together a book/movie recommendation list to share with all. Please send us your all time favorites. If you have a chance, maybe include a few words about why it was important to you.

Next week we hope to start putting out a tentative, evolving schedule of events. Please let us know how we can support you to make the choice you want.

With love,
Chip and Kathy

Please join us for a different kind of open house--April 8, 2005

Greetings,

We are opening up our house in Raleigh Hills for an event on Sunday May 15th. It will be a day of sharing our passions, being in community, and having a lot of fun in the process. You are welcome to join us for an hour, a couple of hours, or all day. We will be starting around 6am with classical music, a fire, and a quiet place for reading the Sunday NY Times or your favorite Sunday morning reading material . And ending as late as folks want to stay with hot tubbing. And what happens in between is up to all of us to create. The idea is to create a space where intentional community will happen.

This will be a day for connection, spontaneity, vulnerability, claiming what is important to us, sharing our passions, being in integrity, being willing to stretch our boundaries, being in service to one another and creating the world we want.

Here are some of our ideas:

• Bring books or magazines that you want to get rid of and we will have a book /magazine exchange. All remaining books will be donated to a TBD worthy organization
• Bring clothes that you never wear and would be willing to part with and we will have a clothing exchange. All remaining clothes will be donated to a TBD worthy organization.
• Food will be available all day starting with bagels and fixings, fruit, and coffee for the morning; great sandwich fixin's for lunch; and, a potluck dinner
• Create a forum for folks to share their passions with others. We envision that folks would sign up agreeing to participate by reading a poem, singing a song, teaching others to speak a few phrases from an obscure language, how to build a web site, build a clay sculpture, do an art collage, watercolor painting, drumming, or.....Think about what gets you really excited. Let us know how much time you would like (1 minute to 30 minutes) and we will put together a schedule for the day.
• A game room set up with a whole bunch of cool board games for those who want to engage-it's OK to still want to play Risk. Some people might like to play "Cashflow" based on Rich Dad Poor Dad.
• A movie to watch and discuss. We are open to suggestions.
• We will identify a book that you may have already read (or will read by May 15th) to discuss. We are open to suggestions.

The idea here is that we invite you to do what you WANT to do. You can engage in as many or as few activities as you want. We simply want to create the space for things to happen. Think of it as kind of a summer camp in a day for adults. Can't depend on the weather but we might even be able to play some volleyball or Frisbee or....

We have really struggled with how we want to include (or not include) children in this grand experiment. After discussing with several people and doing some soul searching, we have decided that for this first day, we are asking that you do not bring your children. Everyone 16 and older is invited to participate fully. We anticipate that some of you may not be able to participate given these constraints. We apologize in advance and hope that after this first time, we can include children for at least a portion of the event.

If you would like to join us for some part of the day, please let us know. Also we want to hear what you would like to share with others. Also, please send us your current most inspiring quote to share. We will have these quotes available for all on the 15th.

This is a work in progress. We are trying to create some structure without getting in the way of "going with the flow." This is a real challenge for two recovering control freaks.

Please respond to this email by May 1st if:

1. You want to share one of your passions with others. Please describe it, let us know how long you want, and if you have a preference for time of day. Please let us know soon so we can set up the schedule and share it with others.
2. You want to come. We definitely need a head count.
3. If you have any questions.

You will be hearing more about the event as we get closer and as the activities start to gel.

Love,
Chip and Kathy