Inner Leadership by David Fish

Author:David Fish
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: David Fish
Published: 2016-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

10

New waters, ancient currents

Day 1

The next morning, Allegra was waiting for us in the kitchen with tea and coffee. She invited the fittest to come for a jog and encouraged the rest to follow the group and walk briskly. The route took us along the coastal path. The sun glinted off the waves in the dispersing mist. Allegra circled around like a sheep dog, spotting those not making sufficient effort, encouraging all in a warm and firm way. Her French accent and enthusiasm were irresistible.

When we returned, some of us took part in a yoga session on the veranda. Allegra invited everyone to work within their capacity, which I liked. She said we didn’t have to achieve the postures. ‘The right position is what you can personally manage at this moment in time, with some effort, not with undue pain. The posture and flexibility are not the main thing. We’re working to support a new experience of ourselves, to release tensions, to feel more open.’ She rounded of the session, for anybody who wished, like myself, with core strengthening exercises from Pilates.

At the end of the session I felt my body glowing. We showered, then returned to the veranda for a breakfast on fresh rustic bread and runny, home-made strawberry jam at a large table. We settled into an easy quietness. Then Allegra rang a bell to let us know Leo was waiting in the main room.

Leo was standing by the fireplace. In the corner was a flipchart. We settled on the sofas. The doors to the veranda were open, letting in a view of the sea.

Leo began. ‘On this voyage, we are both the crew and the passengers. We are setting sail and taking a break from our habitual thinking and feeling so that we tap into the ocean of ourselves. The objective is a new depth and clarity about who we are, where we are, where we are headed. An appraisal of our resources and what we most wish to accomplish. These fundamental questions are usually swamped by the momentum and noise of our habitual thoughts, feelings and activities. In the special conditions here, we can drop down below the choppy waves of our surface life and discover the underlying currents. These currents have flowed since childhood and are expressing themselves at this moment, whether we are aware of it or not. In order to make significant and sustainable breakthroughs we need to know our greatest strengths and weaknesses.’

Leo lifted the first sheet of the flip chart to reveal a quote. ‘This is from the I Ching:

THE WELL.

The town may be changed,

But the well cannot be changed.’

Leo looked at us. ‘What might this mean? As I understand it, the well from which water is drawn conveys the idea of an inexhaustible source of energy, nourishment and guidance in the depths of each of us. The well is our deeper character, the town our surface personality and our circumstances. The passage goes on to say that there are two tragedies: not to go deep enough and not to sustain our efforts.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.