ITC First Day

Well, today was the first day of the conference. We (the volunteers) met for an orientation for most of the day, and what a great experience. To begin an orientation with a visualization exercise and then to use the content for ideas to brainstorm is a new experience for me. The love (for lack of a better term) in the room was palpable at times, and even withstanding the egos present, there was a real feeling of community and joy in our coming together. I met fascinating people from all over the world (there are attendees from more than 25 countries attending), and am quite taken with a few of them. Two women, much younger than I, and I went to a quick supper together and it was great. One is a volunteer for flood victims in Cedar Rapids and the other a librarian. Two young men, one from Australia, were delightful and flirty (you have to love that!), and I enjoyed them tremendously. I also enjoyed talking with a transpersonal psychologist who describes himself as a spiritual counselor (much like my own back home). What a great group to be a part of!

The opening comments with the two conference organizers was another interesting and different experience. The two men stood together on either side of the podium and shared the task. It was emotional and exciting as they set the stage for the conference and brought to awareness the import of this first integral conference.

What I found most important is the call from Mark, one of the organizers, to question and criticize what we experience and hear here. Our task is to help Integral Theory become even more viable and academically accepted so it doesn't fall into an elitist and small field (transpersonal psychology, humanistic psych). Just as we must root out the fallacies and shadows in our own development, he is calling us all to be a part of doing so for the development of integral theory. An amazing and fabulous idea.

Well now I'm going to go down by the pool and read my brochure, selecting the panels and presenters I will attend, and maybe connect with another soul . . . (hear my plea).