Casa Nuestra Senora Del Transito
07.03
Casa Nuestra Senora Del Transito,
Franklin Villanueva y Maza,
(5517) Lunlunta – Maipú.
A quiet beginning-day, the quietest beginning-day of this course.
12.24 Sitting with the Thirty-Minute Sitters. Lots of coming and going. A cellphone went off, I believe a first in any GC morning sitting.
Breakfast at 08.00.
Silence visited and embraced us. The Silence we find in GC, or more accurately that finds us, is the most clearly tangible expression available to direct experiencing (for one who hovers over worthy tomes and metaphysical expositions, especially the Fourth Way) of Third Force: the Reconciling Impulse. This is the force to which the books tell us we are blind. And yet, here at breakfast, it just flew in once again and bit us on the butt. A blessing. Beyond knowing. Beyond understanding. Why might our luck be this good?
Comments, reports and observations on the performances yesterday evening, beginning with
Zum who played once again in Mendoza. The audience were hot! Zum reports.
Onto our performance, with good observations from both performers and audients. My own comments:
1. Both Hernan and myself thought this the best Intro Performance we could remember.
2. Presence in a group: if someone in a group is not listening to other members when they are playing, you can’t ask the audience to listen to them either.
3. There were two full performance presentations: it would have been better were there to have been three (this is generally so, rather than specifically applicable to yesterday’s two performances).
Also discussed: the possibility of hiring a ‘bus and setting off to a rough local bar and entertaining its patrons, most likely unsophisticated, not fans of guitarists, particularly of 41 guitarists whose playing sucked. We noted from the top table that, once upon a time, this is what would have happened. And - who knows? – might yet again.
At 10.45: an introduction to the Exercise of Qualitative Endeavour. So many questions were asked, we were in danger of making a simple matter overly complicated. This we blamed on the translation.
Just completed: the first meeting of The Vicious Queens Affirmative Action Special Study Group, with an appropriate affirmative fisting.
Q. What does Robert see as the role of women in GC?
A. To speak with a woman’s voice what you wish to say.
To T’ai Chi.
13.39 A question asked in the lunch queue, better asked during lunch.
Q. What if my task (for the Exercise of Qualitative Endeavour) can’t be presented during the meeting at 17.00?
A. Then it’s probably the wrong task.
Director Nunez’ heroism is continuing.
19.44 At 15.00: The Guitarist Inside at 15.00 with the Kitchen/Ork Team.
The functional, external aspects of a guitarist playing their instrument are pretty clear. But what is happening inside?
May we wish for each other what we wish for ourselves. How to find and strengthen Wish while playing the guitar in a Circle with others? How may our guitar playing support and develop our inner lives (whatever we understand by that)? How may Wish support our playing? How may we move Wish into our notes, and move this around the Circle to support the work of others? These others are not apart from me: we are the same person.
All this is part of The Guitarist Inside.
Usually, I would not introduce exercises at this level to members of the Team whose practice is closer to Beginner: not yet quite established. But the meeting presents itself as The Guitarist Inside. So what are we to do, if not to honour that? Circa 50 minutes.
Tea at 16.00.
At 16.30 meeting with Zum to present the first two forms of the First Secondary.
At 17.00 until c. 18.45: our meeting to present the QE tasks undertaken this morning. Good honourable work, for the most part. Some hands-on with Right Hands that would not have been possible without the work undertaken through the day.
Dinner 19.00.
Performances by an Intro trio.
Then the 11-piece House Band,
the Guitar Circle Of Latin America, which is playing in Mendoza this weekend.
And Zum with more Funky Prog.
Fab dessert with whipped cream.
20.43 Back in C1, a wide-ranging conversation with Hernan covering the next period; and forming outline plans.
22.12 Final meeting for the course/s at 21.00.
Good comments. A common feature of these was a sense of extended time.
I spoke for our Italian Representative, Alessandro, original translator of Clean Shits & Tedious on the first Italian GC Course.
Thanks were given to all those who made this week possible: Director Nunez; Mariana of the GC Office in Europe; the Mendoza Team centering on The Mighty Bull and Valentina; the Rosario Team around Gonzalo and Leonor; Mr. Marty and his Primary Presentations; Buddies Horacio, Claudio and Ignacio from Buenos Aires; Violeta for Alexanderising the Pitiful Bodies; Zum Buddies Luciano, Fumihito and Shinkuro; Luciano also for T’ai Chi; the Kitchen Team’s work this week, of which I am in awe; and Fernando for all the parties, beer and cigarettes in C7.
Director Nunez spoke of future plans: The OCG VI in Europe next April, although the location is yet to be decided.
The Course/s declared completed at 21.57.
To packing.
