Seattle Chapter Launches!
Harmonicas were passed out. Prescription medicine was purchased. Giant tips were granted. And so began Seattle's foray into the grand experiment of creative philanthropy.
A great group gathered last Friday evening at the beautiful home of philanthropist and rabble rouser Yaffa Maritz to share their giving guts. Some of the most urgent issues on the secret agents' minds were homelessness and healthcare. The Seattle chapter proved to have a very specific vibe--reflective, intergenerational, and yes, new agey. They even sat in a circle (though no talking stick was passed). Unlike New York, where agents tend toward the performative (multi-media, moth story style, and all), or San Francisco, where agents speak with an unmistakable air of social enterprise and art, Seattle was all heart and spirit. Tune in for their first person narratives of the experience.
The next day featured a fantastic day of events at the Center for Spiritual Living, all focused on compassion. Karen Armstrong spoke of her vision regarding the Charter for Compassion, and left folks with a thought very apropos of our work here at the Secret Society:
There is an ecstasy in stepping outside of ourselves.
Seattle or Bust
Agent 1718 reporting. I'm off to Seattle tomorrow, first to participate in the exciting blast off of the SSCP Seattle chapter. This one is going to be house party style, with a homecooked meal and lots of hippies (I'm guessing.) In any case, I will certainly file a full report aftewards.
As mentioned before, this SSCP party is a special one because it kicks off Compassionate Seattle, a day long event on Saturday, April 24th devoted to exploring compassion, both as a philosophy and a lived action in our daily lives. The amazing Karen Armstrong will be speaking. I'll also be giving a short keynote address about SSCP's founding and learnings, in addition to moderating a panel on "Compassion in Business, Institutions, and Society." We've got some great questions lined up, including:
How can we institutionalize and scale compassion?
What is the bottom line argument for compassion? Or are we better served by not making it an economic argument at all?
What about "compassion fatigue"?
If you live in Seattle, why not come on down? We'll be at the Center for Spiritual Living starting at 9 a.m.
NOLA Kicks Off
New Orleans SSCP is getting the party started right. Chapter leader Wade had this to say about their first organization:
It was something of a hoot because this very urban group, many of whom had been organizers for years, ended up talking a WHOLE LOT about notions that they might use their c-note to give chickens away (I didn't know it was legal in NOLa -- I was mistaken!), goats in the lower 9th to keep the grass down (one of the OC turned out to have an uncle in Arkansas who was giving away goats!), and a community garden in a school where one the OC teaches.
Seattle chews on the terror of freedom
The new chapter in Seattle had a rich conversation about what they're going to do with their hundos. Check it out. The event is on April 23rd as part of Compassionate Seattle.
Flossing
The much-loved blog mental floss has a big ol' round up about SSCP in all it's recent explosive glory. Blogger Jill includes lots of great examples of projects enacted among our three, soon to be four, chapters, and includes the video greats as well. I especially like this idea from a commenter named Huckle Cat on what s/he would do with the $100:
Pay the bill for people who are angry and impatient in line, to remind them not to sweat the small things. We have all been stressed out and in that place before.