Weaving the Future Robyn McLean

Weaving the Future Podcast is a passion project birthed at the height of the pandemic, and the podcast episodes I released at this time are very close to my heart. They capture deep reflections on the kind of world I want to live in and my role in shaping it. The podcast has mostly been on hiatus over the past few years as I grappled with some massive changes in my life. In the background, I have actively continued to live the questions that have shaped this work.

In this episode, I reflect on the question of How can we live and work in radically different ways? 
In particular, how do we move toward lives that are nourishing, just, compassionate, meaningful, sacred, joyful, sensual….?  How do we return to a sense of belonging with ourselves, other humans, the web of life and the land?
I start with some deep and vulnerable storytelling about the last decade of my life, in which I have orchestrated some extraordinary transformation in my life and my approach to work.  I share insights on living and working in radically different ways, emphasizing embodying deep love and nourishment for oneself over urgency and fear.
 The episode ends with an open discussion inviting some of the people most dear to me who attended the live recording to share feedback, questions and suggestions for future episodes.

If you would like to learn more about me and my work, check out:
www.weavingthefuture.net
www.tapestrycollectiveco-op

We  are all craving lives that are more authentic, connected, wild, sacred, in touch with our personal power and expression, collaborative, joyful. Lives that are equitable, where we look after each other. Lives that have more ritual, dance, celebration, expression, compassion, stillness, sensuality, awareness, and alignment.

But where do we start?  We will dig into this question together in a 3-part series of rich community conversations.

This conversation was recorded on May 11 at 12pm PST  and focused on the Relationship level. This included talking about how relationships can transform, then discussing different aspects of relationship:
- Moving at the Speed of Trust
- Transformational Collaboration
- Living in Close Community
- Mutual Aid and Caring for Each Other

Check out the episode about where we start at the individual level on:
- Podcast website (https://www.weavingthefuture.show/
- Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/4zQh...) 

Email Robyn@tapestryevaluation.com with any questions or if you are interested in working together.

I’ll present a list of things to consider, to learn about, or to practice in order to help understand and work toward the change we need to see in the world. Honestly, I get frustrated when I see too much individual focus where there, but obviously our society is made up of individuals who all need to start somewhere? So what can we do? 
Overall, I suggest the idea of living the questions, rather than trying to have all the answers.
In this episode, I offer the follow starting points for where to start:
Slow way down -  Feels necessary in order to be able to do any of the other pieces. Stopping the glorification of busy. Avoiding the idea of “We don’t know where we are going, but we are making good time”. Working less for those that may currently have more than we need.Recognize and shift mindsets - Refer back to mindsets and paradigms episode. Also refer to characteristics of White Supremacy CultureCome from a place of love and intention, rather than fear, anxiety or urgency - This is a practice, and a lot of the work we do on our own can be figuring out how to come from love and intention. Ongoing healing of barriers and wounds - Urgency to do work needed in the community can take away from doing our individual healing work. Yet doing our healing work helps us come from a place of love and intention. Important to pay attention to where we are stuck or Embodying unique genius - “Genius” term as used by Michael Meade - each of us has something essential and unique to contribute. It is important for us to find our true voice and inner wisdom. Acknowledging that on some level each of us has a longing to contribute to society, and only we can find it underneath the conditioning and disfunction that exists now. Actively experiment - Bring what you are learning and digging into on an individual level into interpersonal and community level work, and vice versa. Resources I mention:
Google document showing a list of resources and theories I have pulled together for this project - https://docs.google.com/document/d/12PMPGaxGG6PFAP-jsJyfEZKvY8V1MqH5dWJn8EBy11k/edit?usp=sharingInspiration for the idea of “living the questions” - https://onbeing.org/series/living-the-questions/ "We don't know where we are going, but we are making good time" - Human Venture Institute - https://humanventure.com/ The power of reducing to part-time work - This Changes Everything by Naomi Klein - https://thischangeseverything.org/book/ Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture- https://www.showingupforracialjustice.org/white-supremacy-culture-characteristics.html Michael Meade - Finding our purpose or "genius". Living myth podcast episode about genius - https://www.mosaicvoices.org/episode-188-adversity-reveals-genius

This is a guided visualization, meant to help our bodies, minds and spirits tune into a vision for society, connecting with others, expressing our inner voice and gifts, and the reflecting on what healing might be helpful for getting there.
This visualization came to me as a “soul download” after doing some breath work during a period that I was working on this project quite a bit. I was surprised, since I had been taking more of an intellectual approach to this work up to that point. This felt like a reminder that our hearts and spirits are integral to the world we are creating, and will be integral to the process of creating that world as well.
The beautiful background music was composed by our sound editor Dustin Zwaryck, including samples of sound healing instruments used by my partner and I for ceremony. 

I discuss some of the deep-seated mindsets that are at the root of our culture, along with what mindsets we might tune into in order to transform ourselves, our communities and our societies. Other terms that could be used here are assumptions, deep seated habits or paradigms. 
I focus first on moving from the assumption that we are separate from the natural world and need to dominate it, toward the mindset that we are a part of the natural world, able to live in harmony and be regenerative.
Next, I talk about moving from a scarcity mindset based on fear to a mindset of abundance based on compassion, gratitude, and being “materially simple and relationally rich”. 
Thirdly, I talk about moving from a place of favouring aspects of our being that are more traditionally masculine or yang and tuning into aspects of femininity or yin that we have been rejecting. This includes honouring and learning from emotion and observing and receiving rather than jumping to action. 
Finally, I discuss moving from a more linear and causation-based mindset, toward one that embraces complexity and emergence.
Resources I refer to in this episode include the Water of Systems change from fsg.org, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, Sacred Economics by Charles Eistentein, This Changes Everything by Naomi Klein, Dancing with Systems by Donella Meadows, and https://www.kristenappenrodt.com/herstory.

Introduction to the podcast, including background on the host Robyn McLean, an overview of the goals of the project and how episodes will be formatted.