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Coral and Community
I took a few days off last week to float above some Caribbean coral - snorkel on face, flippers on feet - and unwind after my big week. And while it was a relaxing trip, I couldn't help but think about the community we're building - and what the process really means.
At this particular beach, on this particular island, the coral was dying. Vast sections of the underwater landscape were covered with sand where an entire ecosystem used to live. There were healthier areas where a few fish still swam, perhaps working to revive the coral, but the overall vibe was a little sad. (Of course these are all uninformed observations; someone who knows marine biology might tell me that the coral was actually recovering.) But the experience said something to me about community.
I've seen healthy coral before, and it's striking in its diversity. The very range of differences makes it stronger to withstand threats to the system, and (of course) more interesting to view and be a part of. The healthier the coral, the more colorful the fish.
It's also fragile. This is no armadillo, with a thick shell protecting the vitals from the dangerous outside world. The reef lives only if it can be open and accessible... and vulnerable.
I returned to Manhattan after the trip and saw the city, this home town of good experience (and Good Experience), in a different light: This is my reef. This landscape of the wild, the serene, the colorful, the unexpected, the bursting-alive: just take a cab on any avenue for a mile and you'll see that there are some truly colorful fish making their way here - some big, some small, in every way, each adding something different to keep the place strong.
I'd say the same about the Gel community. We're a young little reef, but something about the vibe at our last event in New York, and what I'm getting from the people coming to euroGel in a few months, tells me that we're creating something real, something strange and colorful.
Wherever you work, whatever you do, be on the lookout for this kind of good experience: a community of coral and fish, constantly building.
amen.
i guess the principle at work is that each person's got their goals and desires; they're involved in certain groups because of work, family, location, whatever; the real stuff of life comes out when you can merge the two.
you can treat your involvement in a job or social group like a chore, something you're slogging through out of obligation or promise of financial reward; but if you can remember that all those people you're interacting with are just like you, with their hidden wants and histories -- if you can engage with them not just on the superficial, "professional" level --
as you say, it's about being "open and accessible... and vulnerable." open to the mystery of everyone around you that reflects the mystery within you. that's the stuff. that's the seed of joy.
So great, Mark! It makes me think of community and coral on the principles of a healthy ecosystem. Both are sustainable with balance -- the right blend of diverse resources to create and sustain new growth. Like a budding and thriving ecosystem, an active community, like GEL, is one that fosters a community of specialists, facilitators, providers, and benefactors. The way I see it, you have provided the communal environment where us "fish" can congregate, share, feed, and grow with new ideas for creating "good experience."
What I want to know is, does this make me a Gel feeder fish?
I finally got around to reading your beautiful reef piece.
And I really just wanted to thank you for taking the time to write this and the Good Experience newsletter. It is alway so relevant and so personal in a professional way...just like GEL!
You are truly an inspiration to us all.
Nice thought, Mark! - You managed to beautifully capture my sentiments & live philosophy (just replace "Manhatten" with "London", "Geneva", "San Francisco", or "Amsterdam" :-).
I had to share this with my friends & colleagues, so that they can read it & be inspired, too!
I have to add my thanks to this list.
Why not look at the world with a sense of wonder and possibility. . . no matter where you are.
As Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."
Thanks for finding and sharing inspiration in the face of the devastating collapse of the reefs.