Source Report!

Well, Source happened, and the Franklin is very pleased indeed to have been a part!

Amidst all the goings on: the woven heart, the helmet dome, flames and tunes, mud and spoons, the Franklin Five thrived. Well, three and a quarter did at least.

The Breakdown:

Indulgence Franklin became a square-table discussion on the back porch of the dining hall. It was an intimate gathering of folks and their musings on the subject:

What exactly does it mean to be indulgent?

What kinds of things do we indulge in?

Where is the line between acceptable/healthy and unacceptable/harmful?

And later on:

How can we balance the things we love to indulge in?

Is Source itself an indulgence?

As brains geared up, mouths improved in their discipline, and we teased out some important ideas. Without the aid of a dictionary (and too far off the grid for an Internet answer, darn it), we worked to define the term. Is mere indulgence always a negative thing? No, we decided. For that, there is the hyphenation: over-indulgence. To indulge is to fully experience . . . whatever the case: whether it be chocolate, sex, or even cutting oneself. Pleasure seems inextricably bound to indulgence, but, on later examination, we found that delight is not included in the definition.

So what makes indulgence an acceptable occupation? It is common to believe that indulgence may be tempered with time: Eat one piece of chocolate now, wait, repeat. If you are into spending money, do a little at a time, then, say, next month, it will be kosher to indulge again.. Devouring the whole pizza or bag of cookies, spending all your and your spouse’s money or sleeping for 49 hours straight seem to be clearly over-indulgent.

We came to the [age old] conclusion that, like everything else in this world, balance heals and makes whole. Perhaps a more positive way to reach equilibrium than merely temporal abstinence is the miracle of sharing. If there is a lack of food, and for some reason, you hold in your hands a steaming heap of nutritious edibles, it would be truly indulgent to devour the whole thing. But, wouldn’t it be even more pleasurable to gulp down half and find another hungry mouth with which to share it? If Source is an indulgent way to spend one’s time, effort, voice, talents*, then how can we rightfully offset the tipped scale? Some may say to simply enjoy it to the fullest, appreciation and gratitude are enough. And I very much agree. But, how much better is it to learn how to share these things about Source with others? And how can we do it?

“Here [at Source], people form relationships and are more able to do things, build things.”

“We improve by sharing and giving back to the space itself.”

“We share [Source] by getting into the artistic/creative sides of ourselves, and then go out into the world. Then we make things happen more and better.”

* We never came to a unanimous vote on this one.

** More to think/comment about:

Is it that simple? What if you only murdered once a year?

Can you over-indulge in beauty, healthfulness, or optimism?

Lend a Hand Franklin came in as a happy surprise three days before Source. For two years, we had wished for a way to, well, share and give back in a meaningful way to the community that surrounds the festival. Then, a friend of the Franklins contacted us with a request: A local taro farmer could use some help weeding his loi. In exchange, he offers native information about the area: past, present, and potential futures. Why, this was right up Franklins’ alley! We could be helpful to the ‘aina and be rewarded with truly “insider” information (while getting really extra muddy in the process)?! We’re in!

Keoni, one of 41 grandchildren and the eighth-generation of a Keanae-resident ohana, showed up Saturday morning and presented to Source-r-ers after breakfast. Then, get this, a band of twenty-two followed him through the Keanae Arboretum (a pleasure in itself) and hopped in, knee-deep, to a whole new experience.

In the end, we walked/squished back with some taro, pohole ferns, and smiles about a job well done.

(Thank you Russ and Keoni!)

Off-the-Grid 2.0 was an enormous success! There were four presentations, which shall be presented in grid-format, if only for irony:

	Gyre Clean-Up Project	Off-the-Grid documentary project	Sustainable Solutions	Algae Systems
Presenters	Rich Owens	Mark Matthews	Tasha Goldberg, with videographers Vinnie Goudreau, Javier Martinez	Matt Atwood
Goal	Clean up the Northwest Pacific Gyre	Document lives and adventures led outside the norm of full digital connected-ness	Research, development, and empowerment through mutually beneficial collaboration combining ancient knowledge with modern technology	To assist in developing sustainable community resources
Inspiration	“I saw a fish shit plastic.”	“The quest for ecological solutions must be personal.”	“Sustainability is a journey, not just a destination.”	“Technological solutions that heal the relationship between people and mother earth”
Website	www.gyrecleanup.org	[coming soon]	www.sustainablesolutions.org	[coming soon]

Read: 2012 The Return of Quetzalcoatl

by Daniel Pinchbeck

BOOK CLUB at Source!

Let us read a book together!

Starting whenever you get your hands it, underline, scribble notes and question marks in the margins or whatever you do: we can discuss it, or various topics within it as we go along or at the end.

There will be a larger, public discussion of it at the Source festival in Maui February 20-24, 2009.

This is not the normal hair-brained “oh-god-we’re-all-gonna-die-or-evaporate-or-aliens-are-a-gonna-rapture-our-ass” 2012 hullabaloo you might expect from the title. It is more about why humans keep thinking these things, and the potentially huge positive improvement we may actually be in the midst of right now. We love this stuff.

To quote:

“If this theory is correct, the transformation of our consciousness will lead to the rapid creation, development, and dissemination of new institutions and social structures, corresponding to our new level of mind. From the limits of our current chaotic and uneasy circumstances, this process may well resemble an advance toward a harmonic, perhaps even utopian, situation on Earth.”
…
“It is my view that this transition can be approached sensibly, considered in a way that does not insult our reasoning faculties.”

The book is about the logical explanation thereof, and I agree with it when it says it could be “an extravagant thought experiment”.

So, the [homework] Mission, should you choose to accept it: Read this book before February 20th, make notes, perhaps even choose a particular topic you would like to delve into, and come prepared to discuss!

Franklin Expands to meet Source!

The Franklins’ presence has been requested at Source again this year, and it is pleased at the invitation. This has called for an expansion, though, as this gathering will be considerably larger than other Franklins.

Last year, the themes were:
Off-the-Grid Franklin and
Heavens to Franklin Even!

In this round, instead of many mini-lectures, there are pre-selected “smarty-pants” or “experts” who give longer presentations on the subjects, followed by audience Q and A, and hopefully, a larger discussion among the group as a whole.

 

We are currently accepting ideas for next year’s Franklin topics.

Please feel free to leave your two cents (or even your dollar) in a comment below!

Meet the Franklin

If you had to sum Franklin up in one [rhyming] phrase, it would probably be best as The Innovation of Information Motivation.
That, in another word could nicely be: Inspiration.
Those involved in the group meet with respect of each other and simultaneously recognize the potential of sharing information, projects, and people who turn them on, get them excited, and, well, inspired.

Each lecturer, that is, Franklin gets to present their research or otherwise specialized experiences with the group while still orbiting around a central idea. The focus of everyone’s attention listening to the person who is speaking. Generally, everyone invited has created a presentation and lovingly shares it with the others. (It’s basically a grown-up show and tell.)