Reflections of a non-graphic sort

I know that in the wide world of blogdom we're supposed to post often to keep our avid readers up to date on what we're thinking and/or doing. It's hard for me to imagine that the world is waiting with bated breath for my latest pronouncements, especially since I'm not really using this blog to pronounce on anything – it's mainly meant as a public portfolio of my work in graphic recording and facilitation. So when I haven't done any new work, I haven't got anything new to post.

But just so you know I haven't simply been slacking off, I will let you know what else I've been up to in the past couple of weeks. As you can probably tell from the links in the sidebar, I have a big interest in dialogue. And I have a particular interest in dialogue around difficult issues, like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I am avid to learn about ways that we can use dialogue to achieve mutual understanding, respect and trust – and ultimately to find ways we can work together to resolve our differences. That doesn't mean we will necessarily come to see things the same way! But I believe that dialogue allows us to learn from and accept our differences, and to find the common ground on which we can build. And I believe that peace depends, among other things, on entering into dialogue with those with whom we disagree, and finding new ways to engage with – and appreciate! – each other.

So I was delighted to be invited to attend the Oseh Shalom~Sanea al-Salam Peacemakers Camp in California at the beginning of September. Its organizers are Len and Libby Traubman, who have been pioneers in Jewish-Palestinian dialogue and who have led the way for many others to follow. The camp ran for 3.5 days, followed by a public presentation in San Francisco the following evening. It was an electrifying and inspiring experience that would take me hours to describe here. Suffice to say that it taught me new lessons in dialogue, introduced me to many new friends, and cemented my commitment to work for peace between our two peoples. If you're interested in reading more about the camp, you can find several articles on the camp website. They've added some photos from the presentation, and you can also see the lovely graphic recording done by Nancy Margulies, whom I wrote about in an earlier post, and her equally talented daughter, Mariah Howard.

So that's what I've been busy with, and it's occupied my mind a lot. But today I did another graphic gig, and as soon as I get pix I'll post the best ones. I think I'm getting a bit better each time! Oh yeah: yesterday I bought a digital camera, so I'll be able to take my own pictures instead of depending on the kindness of strangers! Now all I have to do is figure out how to use it....