I’ll be opening space, as part of my work with Guildford United Reformed Church, on 14th May, for the question:

“What are we going to do to nurture and nourish the spirit of Community in Guildford?”

There’s a booking page with the full invitation, but here’s a little video version I did:

I’ve called it “For the Love of Guildford” but I thought using a heart emoji was cuter, which then led me on an interesting journey of discovery about which places it’s impossible to render an emoji (FB event titles for example!)

As usual, I’m not sure what people will bring to this yet. I’m keen not to imply that there’s a dearth of community spirit here, rather that in extraordinary conditions, it might need something else to help nurture and nourish it. There might be some things missing (again, I find it hard to articulate exactly what – and that’s why a big room full of people is a good idea).

I’m also aware that, despite practicing opening space for nearly twenty years now, this is the first time I’ve done it right on my doorstep with a community that I’m part of. It feels easier to do this kind of thing when I don’t have a direct stake in the outcomes (or responsibility for the situation), so this is growing up a little bit for me.

In any case I’m glad for an excuse to come back and blog here today and perhaps reach some of the brave RSS warriors who are still subscribed 🙂