At HOME – an invitation

Dietmar and I met in 1998. We met as change agents who had both come to work and learn with Anna Halprin, a pioneer in collaboration methodology and community choreographer for social change. Anna and Lawrence Halprin, environmental architect, are known as leading social design thinkers across disciplines in design, health, psychology, and systems sciences. Anna had developed her work as part of her recovery from colon cancer.  I related to Anna’s path, as my journey with Ulcerative Colitis over fifteen years has focused my work similarly on creating resilient processes of organizing networks in unpredictable environments.  In this shared ground of participatory design thinking, Dietmar and I began our life and work together as collaborators. We started up Improvisation Labs, developing transformative learning groups in East Berlin.  We led tranformative inquiry labs for change agents and communities. We then founded Dreamfish in 2006.

Meanwhile in the background, what has enabled us to take these risks to innovate for a decade was a wonderful physical home in San Francisco. How we have this home is a story unto itself about participatory design thinking…

I had arrived in San Francisco in Fall, 1997. I was in midst of a series of surgeries at Cedar Sinai Hospital to stabilize my health after years of learning to live every moment in the unknown. Now, I wanted to start fresh in San Francisco.  I came to San Francisco with little but I knew a few extraordinary people.  And, it was the Dot com goldrush days of 80 people standing in line for one vacant apartment.  But, finding a home in these conditions felt doable. I had become comfortable working with the ambiguity of the unknown, a positive outcome of uncertain health.

Here was my process for finding a home – in design terms, here is the”Score”…

I didn’t look in the paper for listings (starting with data and information), then fill out an application (more data, information), and end up with a transactional contract (more data). Nor did I “solve a problem” and fix it.  Instead, I started with connection. I connected to my own wonderment. I then connected with someone who knows me and whose way of Hominess I appreciated.  I asked Doug Paxton. Doug said, “Check out Noe Valley.  Its sunny, peaceful, and close to the Castro. My intuition is that you will like it.” I listened and paid attention. Then, I connected with the place, walking the neighborhood. Increasing the participatory pattern, I then connected with more people and had more conversations.

I talked with elderly people, because they were the most connected. They knew the place and people (They had relational knowledge).  Within a few hours, I had a new friend, Angie, who then introduced me to Mel, her neighbor.  Mel was in his 80′s and hadn’t rented his second story of his building for years. We became  friends. I renovated the flat. Mel rented the flat to me for a very low rate. My friend, Urusa Fahim, joined me and the home enabled us to focus on our doctoral studies.   Then, Dietmar and I met, and we all became family to each other.

For 12 years, Mel, Dietmar and I have shared household resources, shopped for groceries, gone out to dinner and to the doctor’s office. We have cared for each other as human beings. In the process, we have together reduced our environmental footprints and our costs. We have learned together. With his Depression era frugality, Mel helped us become more resource-conscious, inspiring our Clothesline Laundry behaviors.  Mel now uses a cordless phone.  This “landlord-tenant” interaction has been a practice of Home (practical knowledge). It is also an example of how the property rental business can be Human Work.  We traveled, lived sometimes in Berlin, but always came home to Mel.

This every day know-how of Home has nurtured greater capacity from which we do our work to enable social impact (ie. Responsive knowledge). We owe much gratitude to our Home.

Now, Mel has moved to a nursing home in Washington, and the family is selling our house. We are sad about parting from Mel and our home. But, rather than seeing this transition as a problem to solve, we’re looking at this as an opportunity to connect with what matters and start a new life.

Oy! Where will we live? you might ask. We’re not there yet. We’ll start with connection.  We’ll start with gratitude and honoring of Home. We’ll reach out to connect with you. This practice of increasing participation will gives rise to knowing what our new home will be. How?  Here is our Score for we will emerge in a new home (Axiom: Improvisation requires Agile planning.) …

How At HOME: the Score

Timeline

Roles/People

1. Honor Home

• Hang clothes lines within reach across room
• People pin the paper-cut HOME icons to the lines with clothes pins

Want to get involved?

What is Home to you? When are you at Home? Where is Home? How did you discover your home?