In A Shot Of Optimism, Uncategorized

Floatplane ViewCortes Island is an emerald green gem sitting in a sapphire setting that rests along Desolation Sound and the mainland coast of British Columbia.  Both its charms and its challenges come from being an island.  Having spent five days at the Social Venture Institute, it was time to head back to Vancouver where I am this week.

As luck would have it, my planned transportation off the island got cancelled and again as luck would have it, Julian and Jill invited me join them on their float plane.  Float planes are not uncommon in places with lots of islands, like the Georgia Strait, but this was a special plane!  There are less than fifty of them left in the world.

We got a lift down to Gorges Harbor and there on the grass under a large fir tree was the plane.  It took a joint effort to turn it around since one of its wheels was stuck in the sand and mud.  Once on board, Julian fired up an engine and said: We are a car.

He drove skillfully to the edge of the water and like a hippo sliding into the Congo River, we launched.  Now we are a boat.

We glided across the, thankfully, glassy water, Julian eased up the throttle and we surfed faster and faster across the water and then lifted off.  Now we’re a plane!

FloatplaneWe flew over green islands, craggy islands, and water that ranged from turquoise to deep blue.  Once we “landed” in the river in Vancouver, we became a boat again and then a car as we drove up the ramp.

The experience got me thinking about the opportunities we have as humans.  We can be so much more than a limited set of responses.  We don’t have just THREE modes, but an almost limitless range.  We can be bold and tender, angry and consoling, competitive and collaborative, demanding and accepting.  But, the real magic for us is that it is not about being one OR the other, demanding or accepting.  We have a whole continuum of choices.  There is power in knowing that and even more power in living that.

That wonderful plane could only be one thing at a time – a car, a boat, or a plane.  But, we can use our characteristics in varying tones and intensity depending on what serves us, our community and the world.

Play with this and let me know what you discover.

Until next Tuesday.

Elizabeth

 

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