I was never much for math. At exactly the moment letters were introduced as a component of equations, I checked out. That would have been day one of Algebra class. The final eulogy was given as they ushered me in to Geometry class. Full sentences (which I equated to English class) were disorienting in the context of a classroom that purported to offer me mathematical skills. Right or wrong, I quit.

I could point to the fact that my various roles have been fulfilled with the skills contained in the processes of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division and when necessity of algorithmic processing presented itself, I figured it out. Beg, borrowing or stealing being the go-to.

Yet over this season of Story (Thanksgiving to the New Year) I have been afforded a coalescing of my thoughts. A coagulation that seems to have presented a kind of peace. For readers of the Recovery Dragon “Resources Connected” Blog you may have had inklings of this upcoming revelation from previous posts. For readers of Meaningful Trainings “1st (&) 15th” Blog the indicators were not as clear but as I looked back I think the foreshadows where there. Confirmation that hindsight is indeed, 20/20!

Let me pull it into focus.

I’m a philosopher. My life’s work is pondering, wondering, imagining. Akin to a Poet but just to the left (or right) depending on your viewpoint. The difference? Poets seem to know who they are. Anybody can be a philosopher. Being briefly overwhelmed and offering words of amazement and gratitude can convince anyone of their philosophical prowess. Those hearing the rhapsodic meanderings…not always so convinced.

So, that’s my lot. I wander. I wonder. I share and spend an inordinate amount of time informally and formally considering. And selling. Like the picture, I wander around and sell my wares. You know you need them. I know you need them. Which one is the only question.

And yes…I recruit my kids to help sell. It’s a subtle form of intrinsic motivation.

Where are we? Welcome to the world my friends inhabit, the Galaxy of “Huh?”.

My New Year’s gift, given to me and in the Spirit of the Season given to you, is an equation;

Everything is story.
Or, (1 + 1).

Story is every thing.
Or, (=).

As a Philosopher, I propose. That’s when the fun begins. Anyone can then test the equation for durability, reliability and universality. Unlike math equations though, philosophy employs symbols of unequal value (letters, words) for its propositions. It’s like the number 17 being understood by each person in the world as another number.* That makes for tough going when you seek agreement. If that proposition doesn’t make your brain ache, then re-read it. You need that pain to go down this road. It’s the lactic acid of the brain muscle. A clear indication of use.

 I’m convinced. Per my friend, Philly Frank, “More will be revealed.” Indeed, that’s the power of Story!

Hello 2017...the journal on which we continue to scribe, draw, doodle and sketch...everything!

* Imagine 17 being 16.987 or 16.858 or 17.235 or 17.116 yet being presented as 17. Mathematicians or Engineers could not tolerate such variance. We wonder why communication is so difficult yet never stop to acknowledge the means by which we undertake the task is, from the outset, unreliable and we spend most of our time trying to agree on interpretation rather than meaning. The extension of this is the use of force to fit. We'll save that for another day...;-)

Ready or not it’s Christmas time.

To date, one of my favorite seasonal traditions has been picking out and decorating our home’s “centerpiece” aka the tree. There’s a ritual to it that includes history, story, skill, memory, laughter… and, yes, a fair amount of frustration as we dig out the boxes of stored ornaments, unravel tangled lights and attempt to secure the 7-8 ft. beast in its rickety old metal stand while avoiding the deadly prick of knife-edged needles.

This year is different; as some of you know, our family lost its patriarch. Along with his passing, we also lost our ancestral Christmas tree source. His snowy hillside is no longer available for our annual trek to find the perfect Charlie Brown tree (oxymoronic phrase completely intentional). John was many things – a consummate business-thinker, engineer, entrepreneur, apple farmer, bullhead. He was also an artist. So, to honor just a couple of the generational tidbits he’s handed down, we will approach this holiday and our search for the “perfect” tree with his spirit of creativity and invention. Let the inaugural Christmas Tree Challenge commence!

Here’s the gist: our multi-generational team will be challenged to imagine, design and execute the “perfect” tree out of items they find around the house, both inside and out. The only requirement is that the final structure must be able to hold/support an array of our (my!) favorite ornaments. By that I do mean all the grade-school creations! I’m not exactly sure how this will play out, but I suspect our tears will be matched by laughter, our individual and collective skills will inform our process, and our memory will motivate us all.

The Christmas Tree Challenge aligns well with our business philosophy – that there’s enormous value to be found in the generational transfer of knowledge, whether it be related to product, process or performance. Organizational history (story, skill, memory) is literally created by the people who live it; capturing that embedded mastery and perspective can inform new initiatives, fueling us to approach the future with a sense of adventure, creativity and invention.

O Christmas tree, o Christmas tree… how lovely are thy branches!
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A Short List of John’s Legacy “Lessons”

1. Persist.
2. Never discard a 7.
3. Chocolate cake is best with caramel icing.
4. Have a hobby (or five!), learn as much as you can about it, share it with others.
5. There’s no such thing as work/life balance; if you do what you love they are one and the   same.

Any guesses? Mindfulness. Pattern Ball. Cranberries? Connection? Any…hmmmm….

I’m not sure what I have is concrete but I will offer that it’s a good story, and who among us couldn’t use a good story?

Let’s review;

1.      Mindfulness – harnessing the power of the present moment through experience. Like harnessing the power of a horse via a harness.

2.      Pattern Ball – creation of wonder via coordinated, present moment focus.

Which brings us to cranberries. While there are, many stories pertaining to cranberries, historical to modern day, the one I’m fascinated with, the one I’m harnessing to illustrate a connection is the one of the cranberry bog. A sea of red upon a shallow pond or bog. I for one thought cranberries existed like frogs, spending their agriculture cycle immersed (or on top of) water. In fact, that is not the case. Silly me.

Among the many things it is (and there are many) an example of is community and present moment power to accomplish a meaningful task. While on my tour of a cranberry farm (why else go to Cape Cod?) the guide began the tour by alerting us that there would be no bog. Rude awakening alert! In fact, she said this as she had participants get angry at her and demand their money back. So, as I focused my gaze upon the low-lying, grassy, brownish green field out the bus window I began my acceptance. No bog.

What I did learn about the bog was how it exists for a moment in the life cycle of a cranberry farm. An instant – then it’s gone, just like the present moment. The beauty of a cranberry bog, the wonder of a flowing connectedness arising from a Pattern Ball exercise each offer a glimpse into the power of our present moment. How to access that power? Some go through the door of a clinical access (MBCT) others proceed through the ancient gateways of meditation and yoga, still others create their own access point. The harvest is in the moment. What’s your bog?