CONVERGENCE October 20-23, 2016

    This fall we will convene on Maui, in the company of great and potent teachers, to explore and play with the ceremony, ritual and practice of expanded awareness's.  To have the honor of sharing these three days with Kimokeo Kapahulehua, Luana Neff and Failautusi Avegalio is a gesture of service. Love, Aloha and Ohana will be the guiding and conspicuous devotions of this time together.

Itinerary

• Thursday, October 20th: Beginning with your arrival on Maui, you will be embraced by an uncommon welcome.  Plan arrivals by _____ 
• Friday, October 21st & Saturday, October 22nd: 
  • We will be at the summit of Haleakala Friday morning, then make our way to Alakukui Resort, in Hana, Friday afternoon.  
  • We will take part in a practice crafted by Kimokeo, Luana and Tusi which will invite the best, deepest you to invoke reverence, duty, honor and a sense of playful possibility.
  • Throughout the weekend we will visit ceremonial sites, beaches and volcanoes in the outer wilderness, and we will explore the recesses of our inner wilderness with equal awe.
• Sunday, October 23rd: Departure day, plan travel after ____ PM. 

 Pertinent Links:

• Puente Guidance: http://www.puenteguidance.com 
• Alakukui:  http://www.alakukui.org
• Haleakala: https://www.nps.gov/hale/index.htm
• Piilanihale Heiau: https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/asian_american_and_pacific_islander_heritage/Piilanihale-Heiau.htm 
• Kimokeo: http://www.kimokeo.org/hawaii.php?title=kimokeo    
• Family of the Wa’a:https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=family+of+the+waa&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

A most remarkable convergence

I have just returned from a most remarkable convergence of humankind. There are growing legions of souls; devoted, talented, willing and humble, who are lining up, reaching out and expressing their gifts in ways which inform and support our higher selves. It is a noble and sacred path, rife with challenge and desperate allure. These people, of all shapes, sizes, colors and ages, are the shores upon which the spark of loving consciousness may wash up, take root, entwine with others and make fast the resilience and genius that is being called forward by the winged, the hooved, the finned and furred.  The same breezes wash over all of us, felt or not, carrying this evocation. It is inexorable, it is omnipresent, it is frightening and it is magnetic in its promise.
Thank you all for the living, loving care and intention.
Chris Mathias
chris@puenteguidance.com

I can barely wait to awaken in the morning!

Last nite I arrived at 5:15 and at 6:00 I was at a dinner with faculty of Western State University hosting an event for a visiting environmentalist from India, Ajay. I felt so honored and fortunate to arrive into this community, where I lived many years ago now, and to be welcomed into such a place. His talk covered spirit. His talk covered nature. 

These themes and invitations are becoming a roar in my life. Loud, constant, and imploring me. It is a great feeling to be connected to this web of undeniable consciousness. I am here to explore it, to refine my abilities, to see wider and deeper, to share empathetically, and to awaken or even ignite this reality among any who seek it. It seems to me the architecture of our life's journey is often designed and built with short sighted virtues and faulty assumptions. When the epidemic of titles is stripped and the security of companioneering is felt, the power of science, the mystery of sprit and the promise of consciousness is a compulsory and peerless force which is unlimited in creativity and constructive potential.

This is where I live now. 

 

From my Brother Doug

He does not seek fame or fortune, in fact he’s suspicious of it.  He is a defender of the long view and has been for decades.  Devoted, studied, concise.  It is for these reasons he is supported by these esteemed allies of wildness. - Chris

April 29, 2016

The President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, D.C. 20500

We are writing to thank you for your leadership on climate change and to ask for your help: Yellowstone grizzly bears are in grave danger.

Dear President Obama:

Your administration has regrettably taken steps to strip the bear’s federal protections under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), opening up a grizzly bear trophy hunt on the edges of Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone’s bears are a remnant and isolated population. They must be allowed to wander safely outside of Yellowstone National Park.

Americans would never accept hunting of America’s bald eagle; hunting Yellowstone grizzly bears is equally unacceptable.

To make matters worse, America’s great bears face the same looming threats as many species across the country due to climate change. In the last decade, climate change has decimated the Yellowstone grizzly’s most important food, the white bark pine nut.

Unfortunately, the March 3, 2016, delisting announcement by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) came paired with an astonishing declaration in the Federal Register: “Therefore, we conclude that the effects of climate change do not constitute a threat to the [Yellowstone grizzly bear population] now, nor are they anticipated to in the future.”

This statement is even more disturbing in light of your administration’s commitment to addressing climate change, because climate change predictions are dire for all our planet’s species. How can it be that the military considers climate change in all its decisions, while the agency responsible for our wildlife, the FWS, does not?

A critical question: Who benefits from delisting Yellowstone’s grizzly bears? The only certain outcome of delisting bears will be trophy hunts in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

The same argument – the denial of climate change – was used by the FWS in 2014 to deny listing the wolverine in the lower 48 states. On April 4, 2016, that decision was reversed in federal court, and declared “arbitrary and capricious.” The FWS was ordered to reconsider its reasoning about climate change. It’s now time for this federal agency to play catch up and use “the best available science” to keep grizzly bears on the ESA list.

We ask you to instruct our federal wildlife managers to withdraw the March 3 rule and order the FWS to take another look at how climate change impacts grizzly bears. Any decision about the bear’s future should be put on hold until independent scientific review can explore potential impacts to bears from climate change. We strongly suspect that America’s great bears face a dire future, even with the continued protection of the Endangered Species Act.

Respectfully yours,

Doug Peacock

Author, Guggenheim Fellow

Concerned scientists:

Professor Edward O. Wilson, Harvard University, Museum of Comparative Zoology George B. Schaller, Panthera Corporation and Wildlife Conservation Society
Jane Goodall, Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace
Michael Soule, Professor Emeritus, Univ. of California, Santa Cruz

Citizens of the Yellowstone ecosystem:

Jeff Bridges, Academy Award-winning actor
Yvon Chouinard, Founder of Patagonia, Inc.
Michael Finley, Former superintendent Yellowstone National Park Carl Hiaasen, Journalist, author
Michael Keaton, Academy Award-winning actor
Tom McGuane, American Academy of Arts & Letters
N. Scott Momaday, Pulitzer Prize winner
Terry Tempest Williams, Author and Guggenheim Fellow
Ted Turner, Philanthropist and conservationist

MASTERY (my favorite)

Fueled by devotion, guided by brilliance and supported by inclusivity, SVN is where the engine meets the transmission. One without the other is mere potential. Under the guidance of new ED Ted Ning, SVN ’16 opened with the mind expanding, problem solving, future seeing Tom Chi. His Plenary talk on Thursday nite wandered from the genius (the snowflake and it’s instant, comprehensive creation), to the humorous (“I’m not too worried about AI, all technology matches the consciousness of the era, it would probably seek to sell us more stuff”) Rapid prototyping, brain chemistry, listening and learning, and the GAPS of EDUCATION, PRACTICE and MASTERY (my favorite).

This all supported by music, art, breakout sessions, and conversations with people from all walks of intention. I met Perla, working with Stanford to divine the source and motivation (chemical?) of giving. I sat with Jasmine who is bringing indigenous textiles to the high fashion market (VOZ.com). I spent much time with Wetherbee Dorshow, PHD, who is introducing GIS to sI cial enterprise in a seemingly endless opportunity to simplify the visibility of complex systems. Rich Hill, Principle of Compass and Nail, an SVN first tImer, and his “Brand Ecosystem”. Frederick Marx, of Hoop Dreams fame, led the circle which grounds us in inclusivity and welcome. It is only half way through and this convergence brings an optimism that too few people get to eXperience. How do we expand the awareness of this era and shift our trajectory? As Tom said “We don't have a food shortage, we have a consciousness shortage.”

Love for Art Temple

Our Story

My name is Dave Zaboski, I'm a classically trained artist and one of the founders of Art Temple.

I was an animator at Disney, Sony and Warner Bros. during the Second Golden Age of Animation where I worked on such classics at Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Pocahontas, Aladdin, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hercules and others. I've published acclaimed children's books, done concept art for film and television, shown my fine art internationally, been the expedition artist on a search for a lost temple in the Andes and painted for the Dalai Lama. My creativity has taken me around the world. 

For me, creating is connecting more deeply to the divinity that lies within us. We created Art Temple as a response to the exciting emergent movement of radical self expression, community and enthusiasm for the future that is bringing both young and old together at music and arts festivals all over the world. Art Temple was born from the notion that we are all creators. That turning a thought into a thing is a fundamental human condition and the better we get at it, the more our lives can align with our community, our dreams and our purpose for being alive. 

Art Temple is a healing sanctuary and raucous playground for your wild mind. It is a gathering place for creators of all levels to get better at what they do. Staffed by professional artists of the highest caliber, Art Temple offers classes, workshops, programs, panel discussions, one on one training and many other opportunities for people to connect more deeply to their own true source. 

In these strange and unwieldy times, it is profound acts of creativity that will save the world. What you have in mind and in your heart matters and we are here to help you bring it out. Art Temple is meant for you. Come to Art Temple and feel free.

What We Need & What You Get

Art Temple is a volunteer army of professional artists, models, craftspersons, musicians and other creators who come together to help others create more perfectly. We need some help to make this work:

• We're asking for at least $5000 to help with art supplies like paints, paper, pencils, easels, benches, lighting and other materials that make an art studio run. We need to pay our instructors and models for the amazing service they provide. We need a van or trailer to haul our tent, benches and kit to the venues. We feel that with this infusion of cash we can create a regenerative system to expand Art Temple into other realms like conferences, faires, specialty shows and other places. We plan to make this an income producing event. This will get us started! 
• Our perks come directly from our world class artists! One of a kinds, perfectly crafted pieces and limited edition runs will make you the envy of your friends!
• Hey we're in this for the long run. If we don't reach our goal, we're still committed to Art Temple and know it's had, and will have, an impact on people for years to come!

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/art-temple-feel-free/x/13220320#/

Only love,

Dave Zaboski

An authentic life requires a constant exposure to risk

An authentic life requires a constant exposure to risk.

I must be willing to risk my relationship with myself, and others, at every turn, otherwise I become complicit in a insidious and dubious practice of subverting my very own authenticity. And that which I practice I become good at and that what I become good at I grow comfortable in, and that which I grow comfortable in I seek and am comforted by in its familiarity even tho it serves not me, my wishes for myself, nor my relationships.

This discomfort becomes an incumbent and trusted ally in the pursuit of a sovereign life.

Crime and Climate- a post from Jess Reilly→

Jessica received a Fulbright Scholarship to study the adaptations and coping choices of coastal communities throughout Latin America.  I was lucky to sail from San Diego down the west coast of Mexico with she and Josh…

http://jessreilly.com/crime-and-climate/

Yessica!

This is your best one yet! Graceful syntax, potent content, curious context and optimism in fair share. As you head north, I hope to have the chance to intersect with you and josh (oct) as I'll be making my way down around the 10th. Tell josh I had a great, tho brief (two day) visit to Pt Townsend (during the blues fest) saw Jacquline from LB, visited the marine reserve and the grounds and entrepreneurship at the fort. Loved it, though talk about climate change, it was 95f!! I experienced unprecedented heat and draught on my slow trip by six wheels (new RV) and two (my KTM) from San Diego to the Olympic peninsula. Few people were as alarmed as I, and disconcertingly, many called it a "great spring/summer with little to no rain". The rivers I've paddled in years past, the Eel and Klamath, along with many others were just gravel beds with narrowing channels, the high water marks of past years barely visible 20' up the banks. British Columbia, or rural parts within more precisely, are on STAGE 4 rationing, which is deeply restrictive and more comprehensive than anything I've heard of in the states. We could be closer to calamity than we know. The veneer of civilization is thin, and disruption of the water supply could tip the balance overnight!

I'm up in Ketchum now, off to see Brother Doug P in the morning. I'm guessing you heard the fate of the Animas River thru Durango ( and on to the San Juan, thence Colorado ). Saddening at least, and extremely distressing to the people and ecosystem of the southwest. On a more regional note, a sow bear and her two cubs are on death row in Yellowstone, just west of here. Seems an 'experienced' hiker got between her and two cubs and resulted in his death. There is a social uproar at the quick and terminal conclusion. Terry T Williams and Doug are leading the protest, so I'll soon be in the midst of that likely hopeless defense of things wild, acting wild. Amid these relentless stories of insult, I still find reason to revel in the possibility of an enlightened future. Call me crazy.

I'm off the grid for two days up to a wilderness yurt on the east fork of the house river. Spent the day with Ed Viesturs and Paula today, he's been a close friend for 21 years and our connection is strong.