Conversation: the key to change

I read part of the most amazing book yesterday at lunch. It was called "Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future" by Margaret J. Wheatley. This book was mind-blowing because it says a lot of things that I've written here or thought about writing, but Wheatley writes so eloquently her book made me think "yeah, THAT'S what I was trying to say, but the way she put it sounds so much better!" I wanted to e-mail myself some selected quotes from her book for use in this blog, but it quickly became apparent that I might as well just scan in the whole book instead, there was so much there worth remembering. I think a copy of this is going to go on my wishlist for Hubby next Christmas, unless I get impulsive before then.

Here are a few points from the book that stood out to me:

According to Wheatley, every great idea that wound up earning its creator a Nobel Peace Prize most likely started with a few friends sitting around talking and one of them says "How about this?". They bat around the idea and then it grows and takes on a life of its own, and this idea that got tossed out during a conversation becomes a world-changing concept. All because of a few friends talking.

Change doesn't happen on its own; we must work to create it.

It takes courage to start a conversation; it's hard to approach a stranger and talk. At the same time, we are all starved for conversation; our world has become so technologically sophisticated that we have the means to stay connected to the outside world 24/7. Yet we are more isolated than ever. My own thought about this is that we turn to electronic devices and methods as a substitute for human companionship and conversation because there is no fear of rejection by a computer or Blackberry, plus the anonymity provided by electronic media helps us to create a facade we think others will find acceptable, instead of just getting out there face to face and saying "this is me". I'm quite guilty of this. I thoroughly enjoy my online classes for practical reasons, but I also like the anonymity of being a name on a screen. I guess I'm still a little age-conscious about being in school with a bunch of kids, and just being a name on a screen doesn't give the kids in my classes the opportunity to prejudge me ("why is that old lady here?") - they have to get to know me through my work first. This blog is even a good example: I write under a pseudonym and my real name isn't listed in my profile. In my defense I was still job-hunting when I started this blog and I didn't want potential employers to find my blog using a simple Google search and decide not to hire me because they didn't like my politics.

Peace will not happen without change. Conversation is the key to change. Courage is necessary to start conversation. To me all of these things mean that if we want to create change, bring about peace and make this world a better place, we must summon our courage and start talking. Talk to each other, talk to friends, acquaintainces, strangers, anyone. Okay, I guess we shouldn't turn into raving lunatics standing on street corners yelling at passers-by, but anything short of that is good if it gets people talking. I had the greatest conversation a couple of weeks ago when I learned that an acquaintance is actually more like a neighbor and we share the same political views. As we talked about the problems of the world and what needs to be done it was like we validated each other, we confirmed that we're not crazy or alone or perhaps even in the minority. He said something that still resonates with me: he said he thinks a lot of people are ready for change, desperately want change, but just don't know where to start in order to work toward or create change. I think he's right, and perhaps Wheatley's book appeared at precisely the right time to provide an answer: start talking. (But don't forget to listen!)

As I read more of Wheatley's book I'm sure that more of her wisdom will find its way onto this blog. The book I'm reading belongs to a friend at work and I didn't dare bring it home because I know I'd neglect my schoolwork in favor of this book - it's that good!

"I want freedom for the full expression of my personality." - Gandhi

Peace,
AuntieM