To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.”
― William Blake, Auguries of Innocence
Looking back to 2013, I can almost vividly remember me laying in bed tossing and turning, sleep deprived and reckoning with how I should complete an essay on a project that was dear to my heart.The project was called Aspire, the projects aim was to showcase emerging artists, create a community and release music, clothes, arts and more.
In the process of writing the essay I felt a deep sense that something was missing. Maybe the name was wrong, the goal was not clear enough or it simply didn’t align with me. During this deep discontentment I tossed and turned in a state of part sleep, part wakefulness, part hallucination. Amidst this concoction of thoughts, emotions and feelings a strong image came to me. An Image of three lightbulbs. In a way these lightbulbs illuminated the path I should take, not necessarily with an end goal in mind but with more of an orientation, a compass, a continuous discovery.
I share this moment because I feel it has laid the foundation for the path I have been on in the last decade and has deeply influenced how I engage with people, create projects and navigate our rapidly shifting world. I see experiences like this and its subsequent influence on our lives as deeply sacred, precious and present all around us.
To have a view of the world and our relationships as sacred and precious is to view them as animated, alive and full of possibility. This sacred possibility is what guides me, this project and it’s many permutations. For me and my wellbeing it goes beyond the measurement of numbers. The number of subscribers, attendees or members. These metrics may facilitate in the development of the project but by no means drive the project. When it comes to something being sacred it is more of an intrinsic force driving it rather than a craving of external validation.
With this in mind I feel that orientating towards the sacred could be a compassionate compass to help navigate and shape the world around us. In light of various existential risks we face. At this point you might start wondering what is my view of the sacred? To put it simply it’s an approach of care and ongoing evolution. This means even that definition is subject to change over time in light of new experiences, insights and information.
In closing my invitation to all of you reading this is to also sense into and create a sacred compass that helps you navigate your own field of possibilities. What this means in light of our current socio economic structure is to create moments, relationships and projects that are not purely dictated by the validation of external factors. In the process this can create structures, spaces and even more possibilities for people to shape their own paths informed by a multitude of sacred compasses.
🍃 Some Invitations 🍃