"Many ideas grow better when transplanted into another mind than the one where they sprang up." - Oliver Wendell Holmes It's been an exceedingly difficult time for SpiritQuest's staff and our indigenous friends in light of the lack of retreats and complete shutdown of international travel these last six months. Given the uncertainties surrounding international travel, there's no denying that it could be a considerable amount of time until SpiritQuest resumes our retreats. How can we support those who have given us so much? My initial thought was to host periodic video calls with SpiritQuest folks and that if people wanted to donate afterwards to our staff or to our indigenous friends, they could do so. Not a bad idea, right? When I threw that idea out there to my friend Zerin, what I received in return was so much better. Light years better! I solicited more and more feedback from other SpiritQuest alums, and here's how the idea continued to morph and upgrade:
Make it a full weekend affair and online reunion! We can all connect through videoconferencing. People can present a talk or a workshop. We'll host group panels in which people can share some of their personal experiences or transformative lessons from SpiritQuest. We'll have a suggested or optional donation with all proceeds benefiting SpiritQuest's staff and indigenous friends (Zerin);
Create an online auction component to the weekend in which people can donate a service, an item, a gift, and/or an opportunity (Trent);
Host a regular, monthly online video gathering for SpiritQuest grads to reconnect, with an emphasis on integration success stories and setbacks. We will have an optional donation component (Martin);
Note: that will be coming soon in November, December, and each month thereafter!
Create breakout rooms in those monthly gatherings to have some part of it be more intimate (Keating);
Ask people who couldn't attend or didn't want to present or talk live to record a video or audio healing story from SpiritQuest that we could play for the group that highlighted the healing they received at SpiritQuest (David);
See if any musicians cared to perform...who doesn't love a great musical interlude? (Paul)
You can see how the idea transformed from a middling first draft into a far superior idea. Our intention with connecting virtually (and, needless to say, spiritually!) is to raise money for SpiritQuest's staff and indigenous neighbors and also to reconnect online as fellow graduates of the Don Howard University of Higher Consciousness in the spirit of Para El Bien De Todos. Our initial plan is to have this be open to SpiritQuest alumni only. Depending on demand, we may open it up more broadly for others to join us as well. We will have this online reunion on either Friday, October 2 — Sunday, October 4 or Friday, October 9 — Sunday, October 11. If you would like to join us and/or would like to donate, please fill out this survey or you can donate via PayPal here. We're doing something for the good of all, so we would love your input! I received such fantastic ideas from half a dozen friends, and I can't even imagine what sensational suggestions you'll bring to the table. Please also consider spreading the word to your fellow SpiritQuest sisters and brothers. As Don Howard expressed, we're all maestros and we're all apprentices. We all have something to add. To contribute. To offer. We all have a part to play and to shine our light brightly. Should you want to make an offering for this event, the options for doing so are virtually limitless. Maybe that's giving a talk. Leading a session. Participating on a group panel to share some of your personal experiences or transformative lessons from SpiritQuest. A financial donation. Donating an item or an opporuinity or a service for an online auction. Your gratitude. Your appreciation. A covenant to pay it forward. Some of the above. All of the above. We look forward to hearing from you and celebrating this magnificent convergence of kindred spirits. Warriors' hearts beat as one, and that heartbeat will be all the more pronounced when we connect in early October. We stand on the shoulders of giants. Don Howard tirelessly served as a model for service his entire life, and we can strive to match that in our own way. All of you have the torch now. Let's light up the world. One heart, -Parker
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