Collaboration

John Morley reminded me of a conversation he and I had last week around the roles of power and love when I had scribbled on my tablet an idea of the balance between the two in our pursuit of what matters to us, so I’m including it here, together with some brief thoughts, as a supplement to my blog from yesterday.

I think of the balance between our use of power and love rather like a boat tacking into the wind – the constant is the direction we want to head in – what William Stafford  described eloquently in his poem “The Way it is”

The Way It Is

There’s a thread you follow. It goes among things that change.  But it doesn’t change. People wonder about what you are pursuing.You have to explain about the thread.But it is hard for others to see.While you hold it you can’t get lost. Tragedies happen; people get hurt or die; and you suffer and get old. Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.You don’t ever let go of the thread.

William Stafford

Often, we start with the power of our privilege – education, location, culture but eventually reach a point where that power can take us no further and we have to let go of privilege and ego and just turn up with just our humanity, creatures defined by love and soul. 

But eventually, that will take us no further, and action is needed, and we revert to (a hopefully more intelligent) use of power. 

Both power and love have parts to play. The lessons we learn are about how and when to harness them.