Welcome to the Community Inquiry Club :)

This idea, among other ideas, has been on my heart for quite sometime now. Finally I am just going to put it out there and see what happens.

Our first community inquiry club gathering will be on Sunday Oct 2, honouring Mahatma Gandhi. See details in poster and in the event outline following the poster below.

You can also check out the draft details about the Community Inquiry Club. This is a concept that I hope to grow and evolve with others within our community and beyond. (I share it here just to be open and transparent with what is going on in my little brain and heart).

Life is an adventure and we all have different things that pull on our heartstrings. This is my attempt to contribute to more social opportunities within our community, that have an open intention to share in the desire to strengthen connection, healthy communication and relationships within our community. :)

“We have to make truth and non-violence not matters for mere individual practice but for practice by groups and communities and nations. That at any rate is my dream. I shall live and die in trying to realize it. My faith helps me to discover new truths every day.”

Mahatma Gandhi

The General Layout for Community Inquiry Club Gathering--

Dessert Night-- Honouring Mahatma Gandhi

This outline will be flexible:

6:00- doors open for social - outside game for children, youth and anyone keen

6:15- Welcome - intro to what this is all about :)

6:20- Group activity

6:30- Brief intro to non-violent communication

6:40- Group project – it’s a crafty-like challenge

6:55- Honouring of Mahatma Gandhi and birthday cake and desserts

7:15- Inquiry time- Questions posted below

7:45- Wrap up- Game for those keen and social outside

8:00- Clean up

The Inquiry Questions:

1. What does community mean to you?

2. What connects you to this community?

3. What is your history lineage and/or culture?

4. What was a big event in your past or your ancestor’s past that affects you today?

5. What are one or two things that bring you joy?

Bonus questions for the theme of gathering: Who are the leaders in your life that you admire? What qualities do you think make for a strong leader?

Community Inquiry Club. --- this is a mission in progress

Definitions:

Community

- a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common

-a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.

Inquiry

-an act of asking for information.

-an official investigation.

Club

-an association or organization dedicated to a particular interest or activity.

Guidelines and Standards for Community Inquiry Club -- (We can officially set our values and agreements together but here are my key points for now):

* We live in beautiful northern BC and the Bulkley/Nechako Region

* We care about the health and well-being of our community members

* We are curious about the people in our community and their experiences.

* We have a desire to better understand one another and foster healthy connection and compassion with in our relationships.

* We believe in our community and that it is worth the effort to help one another move beyond the fears, traumas and judgements we may be stuck in from time to time.

* We are curious about the practice of non-violent communication and other resources that may help foster greater communication skills, self-awareness, personal growth and healing/greater health and well-being.

* We are curious about the vision for a trauma-informed society (see below for the attached vision from Wisdom of Trauma movement. thewisdomoftrauma.com)

* We are dedicated to exploring and creating ways to foster more connection, communication, compassion, empathy, empowerment, gratitude, healing and growth within our community.

* We want to have Fun :) getting to know, understand and appreciate one another a little bit better.

* We work together to create opportunities for social activities around our community inquiry.

* We strive to be curious, solution focused and take action

* Regardless of our religious or political background, this is an apolitical and non-denominational group.

* We Share our interests, opinions, perspectives, ideas and experiences, contributing towards greater growth, strength and courage in honouring and respecting the lived differences amongst us.

* The ultimate goal is to grow in more compassion, understanding and willingness to hear, discuss and connect with others that may have different lived experiences, and rather than avoid, dismiss and/or judge we choose to raise the vibration towards compassion and finding a place, big or small, where there is a connection…. And maybe, just maybe, we can find a place to meet in the middle and not force or project anger, hate and/or control (judgement and fear) towards the other or one another. We dream big and believe anything is possible if you have a community around you for support and encouragement. This “club” is to grow that community and contribute towards a higher vibration and a new “normal”.

thewisdomoftrauma.com

THE VISION

Our intention, in producing this film was to inspire an active movement towards a trauma-informed society, a society where: • We recognize the prevalence of trauma among all of us • We learn to notice and feel the trauma symptoms in ourselves • We acknowledge that whenever we have an emotional reaction, an old wound is being triggered • We understand the imprint of trauma on our behaviors and its impact on our relationships • We recognize the pain in others and understand how that pain might be driving their behavior • We see the real person underneath the behavior and the trauma • We support connection and compassion as the foundations of safety • We know that the experience of safety is the beginning of healing • We understand that all trauma is intergenerational