Author: Tenneson Woolf

My friend Lawrence and I are in some doozie conversations these days. Every couple of weeks. Scheming. Dwelling. Getting excited. Tenderizing. And, and.

Toward more friendship. Toward maybe, just maybe, a learning journey in 2026 that would invite others to join in the fun. And toward this phrase above — Life recognizes Life. What if that were the journey — to hone that? To surrender to that. To move. To be moved. To adopt a more life-giving story of humans being human.

Rather large, yes. Yet simplified to the every day.

I, and we, are being reminded of a few things.

• that life recognizes life; clarity seeks clarity; depth sings for depth
• a “nutrient bath” is available; through humans settling on the most basic of intents together, opened
• containers matter; the container can be clear; what’s in it can me great variety
• Circle is key for humans; gives us access to stories, questions, wonders, wanders, the invisible
• exploring in organized ways matters (field trips); it matters in self-organized ways too (thx Open Space)
• “get to the heart of it and then move the heart of it” — well, there’s an animating invitation
• “get to brevity that doesn’t sacrifice depth”

And, and.

Thx Lawrence. It’s good to be in this kind of stewing together. This kind of life recognizing life.

I’m quite liking this little book, Quantum Listening, by Pauline Oliveros (thx Jonathan for the recommendation).

Here’s two snippets:

“Deep listening puts experience before everything else. It emphasizes both detail and scope of…’the sounds of daily life, of nature, or one’s own thoughts.'”

“As you listen, the particles of sound decide to be heard. Listening affects what is sounding. It is a symbiotic relationship. As you listen, the environment is enlivened. This is the listening effect.”

How wonderful, right.

Our attention to a person and to life, makes the sound and the story come alive.

Or as I said in B&B yesterday, we can listen a story out of each other. And thus we did.

Enjoy a peruse.

This newsletter is a quarterly thing for me. Kind if a constellation of things that I put in this blog.

I like picking one of my photos. Sometimes a theme. I like pointing to some of the stuff that is life-giving. And that has learning in it.

I like sharing. I like inviting.

And I do love an easy kayak.

I’ve got a story cued up. About a Willow Tree.

It’s for the Becoming & Belonging Series — this week’s convening. 

Jump in.

I like these lines of description:

• The story becomes a map to find insight and intuition. About life. About work. Clarity inner and outer.
• If you are the tiniest bit contemplative and associative, this will likely bring joy. If you are a person that orients and lives in much more linear world, this will likely give you a refreshing soak in the less linear.
• Come as part of your role, seeking development. Or come as the curious human you are that is redefining your role.
• “The universe is made of stories, not of atoms.” (Muriel Rukeyser, Activist, Screenwriter)