throwing these oranges they must’vefoundona tree.AstheyseeMumcomeout,thekids
naturally start running. But Mumreachesouttothembecauseherintentwasn’tmerelyto
get them to stop. She had seen thousandsofpeoplecomeintoherhomeandembracedthem
as sons and daughters and kin,andnowsheseesthese11-year-oldsandshedoesn’tjustwant
them to run away. She’s saying,“Heykids,I feeda lotofpeople.CanI havethoseoranges?”[Laughs]. What a transformation.SotheAwakinCirclesarea verysimplestructureand
container for a lot of inner worktohappen.Firsthour,sitinsilence.Secondhour,listento
everyone. In the third hour you’regivingandreceiving.It’sallquiteordinary,right?But
that’s precisely why it’s amazing!Just that, and an inexplicable collectivegratitudearises.Andthehostsaren’teventryingto
capture that gratitude. They’resaying,“Payitforward.Dosomethingkindforsomeoneelse,
and wherever that is, that is ourfamilytoo!”NowAwakinCirclesareina hundredplaces
around the world. Including Melbourne!Youtrustintheinherentprinciplesoflovethatifyouarecoming
togetherinthisway,whateverneedstohappenwillhappenin
thatfield.Sojustbybeingyourordinarycontentselfyouarein
servicetowhatemerges.Andthismicrocosmbecomesa perfect
example of the kind of systemsthatwecouldpotentiallycreateintheworld.It’saboutletting
go, surrender and trust in the flow.Assoonaswetrustinourinnateabilitytoconnectin
this gentle way, we move from directreciprocity,whichis,“Igiveyouthis,whatareyou
giving me?” to indirect reciprocitywhereI dosomethingforyou,youpayitforward,that
person pays it forward, and thecircleofwhatgoesaroundcomesaround.Soimaginewe’re
all standing in a circle. I give a shoulderrubtothepersoninfrontofme.Thatpersongives
a shoulder rub to the person infrontofthem.Andthenultimatelywhoever’sbehindme
gives me a shoulder rub. So everyonegetsa shoulderrub.Butifyougotoa massageparlour
and say, “Give me a shoulder rubandhere’sfivebucks,”that’ssingulardirectreciprocity.
Of course, there is a problem here.Ina circleofindirectreciprocitywhathappensisI
may actually give a fantastic shoulderrubtothepersoninfrontofme,butI maynot
get such a great shoulder rub! Right?Sothere’sa costtoit.Butwhat’stheopportunity?
The opportunity for paying thatcostisthatyougetthecircle.Yougeta deepconnection
with each other, and at a very basiclevel,there’sa collectiveenergytoit.Butthenthere
is intelligence of that energy thatchangesthewayinwhichwebehaveandchangesthe
patterns of our relationships.Ourentirebodiesareantennasfor
somuchdata,ifwewanttocallit
that.Ifyou’rejustusingmefora
massage and giving me five bucksinreturn,youarecompletelyminimisingthatpotential.
But if all of these people come togetherandconnectinthecontextofa largergrid,justBrilliant.
Really? I want to do it. And it’s not like we
need to be facilitators or anything. It’s just
welcoming people into your home?Aha, when we’re limiting ourselves to the kind of transactionthatwehave
at the moment, we’re missing out on other kindsofvalueorcurrency,.
It’s a respite from thesensationalism. Ithelpsus
stop the multiplication ofwantsanddesires bysimply resting inthe moment,breathing,being
with each other.75PAYS IT FORWARDCONVERSATIONS