words

Last night a small group of us gathered at a friend’s house for a bit of a farewell celebration.

Our buddy JT Burns was leaving the state of California and heading home for new adventures and possibilities.

So there we were, a small group of us huddled around an outside fire pit, drinking beer and eating chips and marshmallows and just enjoying our friend Jon.

Then at one point, Nate suggested we share some fun and meaningful Jon stories and so we took turns to remember Jon out loud – how we’d met, where a good connection had been, what he meant to us. Out mutual appreciation of Doctor Who. And so on.

My friend Darin was at that gathering and he is so great at pressing pause on an event and asking a good question or creating a space for meaningful sharing and dialogue.

My wife, tbV, is really good at that as well.

And i think i have been learning from both of them over the last few years and a getting better.

A large part of it for me comes from this idea of really making life count, which i wrote about a few days ago… How do we seize a moment that might otherwise be fairly ordinary or even good, and elevate it to greatness.

How do we create spaces to say the things we want to say to people before they leave or die?

Are we intentional about creating moments of true celebration or meaning within our gatherings?

i know that’s something Val and i have been trying to do with our Conversation Dinners and even simple practices like the phone basket and we have been seeing some significant encounters as a result.

What are some of the practices you engage in or have experienced that help make a moment or a gathering significant for those who are there?  What is something you have thought about but not yet been brave enough to try?

wordz[To read more about our last Conversation Dinner & responses from the people who were there, click here]