Espero que sigáis al otro lado… Este año más que nunca me hacía falta reconectarme con vosotros. También quiero desearos un 2021 liviano y creativo… en el que todo lo que hemos aprendido nos acerque a una vida lo más parecida posible a la que deseamos. I hope that you are still on the other side... This year more than ever I needed to reconnect with you. I also wanted to wish you a light and creative 2021... in which everything we have learned brings us closer to a life as similar as possible to the one we want.
WILL THE SKY FALL ON OUR HEADS? * It has been quite a year. All of us have lost something important; from freedom, to innocence, to trust on our sacrosanct institutions, to the illusion of immortality, to the ability to do business as usual, and to the belief that the consequences of widespread change all over the world would be dealt with by someone else after us. There have also been very “real” losses such as economic as well as opportunity losses like the loss of our jobs, projects or livelihood, our homes, our health and in the worse cases some of our loved ones. We have received an extreme course on what it means to live in a state of becoming rather than a state of being, and on the importance of being awake, grateful and human, and appreciating the fact that we are inextricably linked. It is a chance to create the necessary emptiness that can later become renewed fullness by discarding preconceptions, embracing some degree of chaos, abandoning old “shells” and ultimately discovering new paths for ourselves. An opportunity to explore -even if fear is along for the ride- the nature of change. We have also been granted an unlikely possibility to practice emotional agility and to stay connected to the wide range of feelings that make up the experience of being profoundly alive. To embrace all of those feelings –both positive and uncomfortable– with curiosity and compassion. To discover that hidden inside us is a kaleidoscope of emotions, but our heart has been clamped down from very early stages in our life in order not to allow pain – loneliness, frustration, disappointment, sadness, fear, jealousy – to enter. And that by cutting off the pain, we have also disconnected key pathways to joy and aliveness. Part of the work in the coming months -in alignment with the winter season essence in the northern hemisphere- is to learn to move towards the uncomfortable. To visit the fractured parts of us that we have stuffed into our shadow-filled suitcase and look at them in broad daylight. Life is giving us a chance to claim fullness and embrace the completeness of who we are. And, as I have recently been reminded by a true Master, the prize for that act of courage is a life filled with many exquisite moments. Just as pain and joy share a chamber of the heart, emptiness and fullness share a sphere of our soul, and the way towards this fullness is through the emptiness. Paying attention to emptiness will help us soften and open, and our warm attention will flow into the cold spaces of our hearts until slowly, slowly, that cold emptiness begins to thaw. And with enough spacious time and loving attention, the emptiness will transform into fullness. The same way that at the darkest cold of winter we all take comfort in the thought of the returning warmth of the spring. The same way that spring flowers do not resist the winter but accept it and are strengthened by it. The same way that the tree stays rooted in hope just enough to set buds in the fall. Let us root ourselves in that same hope as we enter the leadership spaces that the times require and apply ourselves to the transformation of the collective. Let us concentrate on embodying a better followship, so that those who want to rule our destinies will find themselves confronted with a barrier of critical thinkers who are willing to take charge of themselves. Let us develop the quality of sophistication that the multiple mutations of the world as we have known it will require of us. Let us create alliances of good-willed people who believe, as I do, that the time has come to promote a transformation of ourselves, our organizations, our institutions, our countries, the planet ... and who are willing to take on their share of responsibility. Let us make sure that no one robs us of this time bursting with possibility, nor of the opportunity for the “good guys” to win. Let us close our eyes and imagine better futures… and when we open them, get down to the task of changing the environment that is closest to us. And let us transform reality and join forces to achieve a change that is really worth it, a change that truly deserves us. May the Force be with us. * The greatest fear of Abracourcix (Vitalstatistix in English), Chief of Asterix´ Gaulish village in spite of the fact that all of the village´s inhabitants are invincible thanks to the magic potion. Asterix the Gaul is the first volume of the Asterix comic series, by René Goscinny (stories) and Albert Uderzo (illustrations) and has been listed as the 23rd greatest book of the 20th century by Le Monde. Many of us grew up with these stories.