Sangha of Auspicious Companions

December 3, 2017

a project of ServiceSpace

Open Source Seeds

At a time when the monopolization of genetic resources by corporations is reducing diversity and limiting the variety of seeds available to farmers and gardeners, OpenSourceSeeds is licensing seeds to make them available to the commons in perpetuity. Working within German laws, they developed a licensing agreement with the express purpose of creating a new repository of genetic material for farmers worldwide to access. Dr. Johannes Kotschi, one of the leaders of this initiative explains how the licensing came about, how it protects the seeds, the farmers, and the seed’s genetics, and how others are using their process to license bees, animals and microorganisms so they remain available to the “commons” and out of the control of corporations. { read more }

Be The Change

Open Source Seeds is in the first stage of implementing their idea. YOu can learn more about them here. Consider what you might do to share the idea of open source seeds, convey the urgency of protecting seeds, bees, animals, and microorganisms and/or promote the notions of food security through diversity and the restoration of crop seeds as a common good. { more }

DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers “good news” to 244,403 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here.

Other ServiceSpace projects include:

KindSpring // KarmaTube // Conversations // Awakin // More

December 2, 2017

a project of ServiceSpace

Stone by Stone

Facing a row of heavy sodden soil to be turned by hand, and looking up at the wider project of other rows; these moments come up in so many ways over and over in our lives. “How will this all get done?” we wonder. The choices to procrastinate, to look for a quicker or easier method, or to give up and walk away declaring “It can’t be done!” are all possibilities. The approach we take in each of these moments has meanings and answers that go deep into the underground of our lives. Alanda Greene turns these reflections over one forkful at a time in her essay about the annual task of turning dirt. { read more }

Be The Change

The next time you face a daunting task, pause and ask yourself one or mor
e of these questions from Alandra’s essay. Use your answers to guide how you proceed. What am I choosing to express in my life? What qualities do I want to strengthen? What values do I choose to live by?

DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers “good news” to 244,370 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here.

Other ServiceSpace projects include:

KindSpring // KarmaTube // Conversations // Awakin // More

December 1, 2017

a project of ServiceSpace

Wislawa Szymborska: The Poet and the World

Poets are Fortune’s darlings according to Wislawa Szymborska. Despite the trials and tribulations, the frustration of not feeling comfortable calling oneself a poet and the real threat of claiming the title “poet” without official certification in some countries, poets are charged with answering the inner impulse of inspiration with “I don’t know.” The search for knowing leads poets inevitably to create a body of work, one that is never fully complete. They consider every word, weighing each one to reveal what most of us consider ordinary and normal as extra-ordinary and unique. Whether stone or cloud, day or night, a single existence or a person’s existence, poets give their lives to describing a world and those in it as astonishing. What follows is the translated text of Symborska’s Nobel acceptance speech. { read more }

Be The Change

Find a poet you enjoy and use her work to inspire you to write your own poem. Choose one day and look at every thing you see and each moment as astonishing, then describe it as a poet might. { more }

DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers “good news” to 244,387 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here.

Other ServiceSpace projects include:

KindSpring // KarmaTube // Conversations // Awakin // More

Portrait of an Artist – Milan Rai

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November 30, 2017

a project of ServiceSpace

The Sound of the Genuine

“Cultivate the discipline of listening” for your genuine self. This is the advice that Howard Thurman gave in 1980 during his commencement address at Spelman College. How many of us ever take the time to do that? We spend our days in many pointless pursuits that distract us from our essential truth. Thurman says the world is waiting for this truth to pour out of us, it is of our own creation and can’t be dictated by anyone else or mimicked from others. Whether grand or simple, it is what we need to give to the world if we are to find ourselves or make the contribution that only we can make. Read more of Thurman’s profound address here and cultivate the discipline of hearing that still small voice within to be yourself. { read more }

Be The Change

The inner voice of wisdom within each of us is a guide to the genuine self. It takes time and discipline to discern internal noise from the inner self, but with time and testing, one begins to hear with the intuition of the heart. Today, listen for that inner call to be true to your genuine self. For more inspiration join this Saturday’s Awakin Call with animal rights activist Jasmin Singer, who listened to the sound of the genuine within herself. RSVP and more info here. { more }

DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers “good news” to 244,373 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here.

Other ServiceSpace projects include:

KindSpring // KarmaTube // Conversations // Awakin // More

November 29, 2017

a project of ServiceSpace

Having it Out With Melancholy

With great care and attention, make a hot cup of tea. Take it to a room with a window. Sit down, take off your glasses and exhale slowly. Listen to this hauntingly beautiful recording of Jane Kenyon’s poem read aloud by Amanda Palmer. Listen again. Let the understanding, pain and relief wash over you. Then, after a moment, explore the rich context of Maria Popova’s introduction to this Brain Pickings article. { read more }

Be The Change

Share this recording with someone you know who needs to know they are not alone in their own struggles.

Be brave and invite someone over to listen together.

DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers “good news” to 244,380 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here.

Other ServiceSpace projects include:

KindSpring // KarmaTube // Conversations // Awakin // More

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November 28, 2017

a project of ServiceSpace

Nipun Mehta on What It Means to Serve

In this interview at the Sun Valley Wellness Festival, Nipun Mehta, the founder of ServiceSpace, explores the nuances of what it means to serve. His talk affords a glimpse of various ServiceSpace projects like KarmaTube, DailyGood, Karma Kitchen, and more. Karma Kitchen works on an intriguing pay-it-forward basis. When patrons are done eating, the bill arrives with a total of $0.00, and a brief explanation of how someone beforehand has made a gift of this meal; patrons are trusted to keep the chain of kindness going and continue to pay it forward for future diners. Nipun maintains that in this era rather than putting heroes on pedestals, its vital that everyone become ‘everyday Gandhis.’ Service doesn’t have to be some big, grandiose thing – you can hold open a door, pay someone’s toll, or just be a good listener. All these small, every day activities come from a place of love, and ultimately serve humanity as a whole by breaking down boundaries, and inspiring faith in the goodness of others. { read more }

Be The Change

Pick one act of service you can practice doing this month on a daily basis. Learn more about ServiceSpace’s different projects and initiatives here. { more }

DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers “good news” to 244,397 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here.

Other ServiceSpace projects include:

KindSpring // KarmaTube // Conversations // Awakin // More