Dear Chris,
You and all in Australia have been in my thoughts and in my heart as I
listen to the reports here on CT and in the media. Thank you for bringing the
human/personal to us all. I do think it is relevant to our discussion here on
many levels. I appreciate your thoughts about addressing global warming more
directly with our work and I would love to see more thoughts about this on
this forum.
It has been interesting to me watching the stories in the US media about
this disaster have focused mostly on the reports of arson, and little attention
to the weather conditions. I have yet to hear a report focused seriously on
a connection with global warning. Is it that we would like to find the
perpetrator here as an arsonist so we have someone to blame outside of
ourselves?
It is very challenging for me to see my own role in the events of your
country, or to feel my own guilt as I see the high tide water creep over the
road
at the entrance to my neighborhood during a full moon. However, I drive my
car 45 minutes to one of my offices, I take a long hot shower daily, I heat my
house with oil, and I eat food produced in far away places and shipped to my
local grocery store. So while I do not want to inflate my role here, I
think it important to acknowledge I am one of the guilty ones responsible for
the conditions producing the horror in your neighborhood. Perhaps if we can
make these kinds of personal connections with people we know and love we can
make some serious efforts to adjust our behaviors.
Lets chat more about how we might approach this issue in our workshops.
With love,
Don
Donald Opatrny, LMFT
Systemic Psychotherapy Services for Adults, Couples, Families and Children
Executive Therapy, Systemic Constellations Work
Offices in Guilford and Monroe CT, USA
203.452.0399
dpomail@xxxxxxx
In a message dated 2/10/2009 6:21:06 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
chrisjwalsh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
I know I started this conversation on CT.
However I would like to encourage Australians to post these emails of a more
personal nature directly to the intended recipients rather than through CT.
It is difficult to attain the right balance of allowing some personal
communication such as Snehs's about her surgery or about natural disasters.
Clearly the personal is the context of our work and therefore relevant. It
is a matter of how much we can allow in and still have this forum work for
its intended purpose of discussing constellation work.
The bushfires here which are very close to my home and have touched me in a
very personal way. We are still in danger and the death toll keeps rising -
now above 300. It was an extraordinary fire at times moving faster than 300
kilometres per hour. With the hellish temperature (46.3) if the winds had
blown the fire into the Melbourne metropolis where I live it could have been
a death toll in the tens or even hundreds of thousands. However I will not
write about them further here unless there is a really major development or
there is something that arises relevant to constellation work. I am quite
happy to talk about it with people through private communication in the
meantime. Again thanks for all the solidarity and support.
In terms of constellation work I believe global warming is becoming a much
more urgent issue than even Al Gore proclaimed. Hopefully we can use the
constellation process not as some sort of magical thinking way to delude
ourselves we are doing something useful but rather as a practical tool to
introduce clarity, better communication and expedite effective cooperation.
The alternative is what happened to 300 + people here last Saturday - to
burn in hell.
hasta la vista
Chris Walsh
Melbourne, Australia
webpage: www.cwalsh.com.we
-----Original Message-----
From: _ConstellationTalk@ConstellatioCon_
(mailto:ConstellationTalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx)
[mailto:_ConstellationTalk@ConstellatioCon_ ;
(mailto:ConstellationTalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) ] On Behalf Of David Ward
Sent: Wednesday, 11 February 2009 7:33 AM
To: _ConstellationTalk@ConstellatioCon_
(mailto:ConstellationTalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx)
Subject: Re: [ConstellationTalk] 36.3 Celsius 114 Fahrenheit
Hi Leia and Jonine.. below is some mail I received from Preeti ...its a
post from Daricha and Rachana and their email address is included....post
------ Forwarded Message
From: <_daricha@bordernet.darich_ (mailto:daricha@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) >
Date: Tue, 10 Feb 2009 12:24:45 +1100 (EST)
To: Preeti Helena <_preeti@helena-preeti@helepreeti_
(mailto:preeti@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) >
Subject: [Fwd: Thank you]
Thanks for your enquiry about how we are.
We lost the house and all our
personal possessions, in the fire on Saturday.
Also burnt was one of the temples, the orchard barn, 2 yurts the toilet
block, and greenhouse.
remaining is the caravan the barn and the Shiva temple.
One of our sons hired a chopper to get us out as it was clear we could not
save anything else.
we are currently staying with family as we work out the next steps.
forgive the slightly impersonal note but we have no computers, 1 flat
mobile phone and a new journey,
love and blessings,
Daricha and Rachana
leia reid wrote:
David - thanks for the post. I have been trying to get hold of Daricha andhave been really worried... I am glad they are safe and so sad about the
(mailto:ConstellationTalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx)
Leia
To: _ConstellationTalk@ConstellatioCon_
From: _theocean@bigpond.the_ (mailto:theocean@xxxxxxxxxxx)was saved by
Date: Mon, 9 Feb 2009 15:58:05 +1100
Subject: Re: [ConstellationTalk] 36.3 Celsius 114 Fahrenheit
Hi Chris.. our place was in the direct path of the fire and
will
a wind change...Dariecha and Rachana - they run constellation work at -
The Centre for Human Transformation - a few kms from us - lost their
house and their Centre and became trapped and were only saved when
their son arranged for a private helicopter to pick them up..as I
understand it was a very close call..right now there's been a wind
change from the SW to there SE...the kids were sent home early from the
school next door this afternoon ...and I'm about to get on the roof
because friends of ours a couple kms away are coming under 'ember
attack' ...any way still hope to see you Wednesday... attack' ...any way
haven't give the wrong impression ....Janne and I fled on Saturday...no
heroes here...all the best David..Fresh Medicine ...Healesville
Chris Walsh wrote:
Yesterday in my home town we had the hottest day on record. It was
unbearable. When you went outside it was so hot it was difficult to
breathe
There are still terrible bushfires burning. They are the worst bush
fires we
have ever had. So far 66 people are dead and we expect the death toll
were
rise to well above 100. Far more have suffered horrendous burns. Over 700
homes have been destroyed. Whole townships have been razed as if they
man
carpet bombed. God knows how many animals kangaroos, possums, koalas,
cattle
and sheep have been killed and injured. I saw images on the television of
kangaroos jumping away from the flames as fast as they could in these
searing conditions. They must have been exhausted and dehydrated if they
ever made it to safety.
And at the same time as all this, I was facilitating a constellation
workshop. Some participants had their own homes directly threatened.
Everyone knew someone in danger or directly affected. The premier of our
state of Victoria cried on television. The prime minister took a grown
<_http://www.cwalsh.http:/_ ;(http://www.cwalsh.com.au/) >>
into his arms who was sobbing. Australians usually bear crisis with
defiant
good humour. This was different.
This was our hurricane Katrina. I am afraid we all more and more
vulnerable
to extreme weather events like this with global warming. Please send
us your
good wishes. God knows we need them.
hasta la vista
Chris Walsh
Melbourne, Australia
webpage: <_http://www.cwalsh.http:/_ ;(http://www.cwalsh.com.au/)
(http://windowslive.com/explore?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_t1_allup_explore_022009)
www.cwalsh.com. w
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