Welcome to a place of action.

Here is my intent by borrowed words.

Aroha is a Maori term that goes back to Waitaha times. It might be translated as "unconditional love", and it stands for the utmost respect for fellow human beings. You can feel Aroha, when you are invited to enter a Marae. Rituals play an important part in Maori culture, as in the Powhiri, the welcome ceremony. After the challenge, exchange of speeches and Waiata (songs), the Hongi (touching of forehead and nose) signifies the sharing of the same air, the life force, and this seals the generous inclusion into the tribe.

A common ritual at gatherings is the use of the Tokutoku, or talking stick. Whoever holds the stick can speak whatever they want for however long they want. Holding the stick creates the space for everyone hearing each other. This is the prerequisite for peace. Everyone needs to have a say, and what everyone has to say needs to be validated, not necessarily be agreed with, but heard. In spaciousness there is place for everyone. There is no time pressure: "it takes as long as it takes." This is Aroha in action, and we are in the fortunate position in this country that this spirit of Aroha has been kept alive in an unbroken lineage of being passed on from generation to generation.

New Zealand jade, called Pounamu, symbolises Aroha. In the old days it was carried through the land for the purpose of healing. Healing of the land and of people.

"Pounamu is the sacred stone of this land. It is the core to the spirit of this land. Within the great rainbow of the planet, the colour of Aotearoa is green; the colour of healing. The stone of this land is Pounamu, which is often called greenstone. The spirit of this land is Aroha, or love, and the stone embodies that spirit. It is a very special stone. In Waitaha understanding, it is of the stars, Mere Pounamu, the star of many colours. Pounamu is not only green, it can be white, black, blue, green, light green, dark green, or golden. It has many, many colours. No matter what colour, its spirit is always the same. It is the stone of healing; it embodies the spirit of love. When we touch the stone, we touch into the stars, into the beginning of all. All that is, is of the stone, and the stone is all that is. The stone is of the beginning, it endures and is of the end. The stone is of the mountain that stands tall, that falls down into the river, is carried to the oceans, its boulders in the streams, t o finish up at the beaches as sand, to sink deep within the ocean, to be bedded down and become rock again, to be raised again in the future as mountains. So the song of the stone is an enduring one, of all ages. The spirit of Pounamu is the spirit of creation, the lore of the universe. The lore that drives the universe is love. That is the spirit of the stone."

thAnk you ^^and wwelcome

I wonder how we could apply the talking stick to this kind of forum. Giving your say is one thing. Actually giving time to listen is another

I love that passage of text, and always like to consider the stick, and hope others might to.
There is an added intent of efficiency that should be there and is probably hidden by saying "that it takes as long as it takes"

As the orator on the soapbox said in that speech that started the recent motivation... paraphrased. Pray some remember this conversation tomorrow for some will certainly forget.
So lets not let letting it take as long as it takes be excuse for complacency.
wow, felt like I was just telling me-self off a bit there.

Rabble! Yeah there's my 2 cents. So what exactly is the intended purpose of this other forum?

Looks like we better stoke the fires and light this place up!

StrengthofSin wrote:Rabble! Yeah there's my 2 cents. So what exactly is the intended purpose of this other forum?

What ever we want it to be. It is our 'intent' to be free

That makes perfect sense then Whitehaze, lol. Sounds good to me.

Free is good.