I Am a Circle Carrier

Last Wednesday, a week ago, John and I traveled to Washington state to participate in PeerSpirit’s Circle Way Practicum. As I realized that this would be the last time Ann Linnea and Christina Baldwin would be hosting the practicum on Whidbey Island (their home base), I was so glad that we had this opportunity to be in Circle with them.

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There are so many ways to describe what we did  and what Circle is that I am not quite sure where to begin. 

I have been in many meetings and gatherings where we made the shape of a circle and set ground rules for our conversation including making sure that everyone talked once before anyone spoke a second time. But the thing that hit me hardest and/or opened me up widest was and is the reality that without some of the other elements that the Circle Way offers us, our circles won’t become spheres — this is the way I’ve been describing some of what I learned. 

I look forward to incorporating PeerSpirit Circle into my courses over the coming years, particularly Thinking Ethically this Fall and Ethics for Organizations in January.