The Matrix of Acknowledgement
A learning journey sometimes feels like a process of weaving. Especially when we’re connected with equal partners, colleagues, tribes, with the same vision and intention.
Not with the direction. Direction depends on the start point and the end point. Naturally, it should be different, and there could be a lot of new learning to be gathered.
Life is not always about creating and holding the conditions, not always waiting for the best weather to sail, and the best soil to seed. Life in the context of weaving is like starting with confidence, as part of the universe, as part of a group of synchronicity that happens in life. It’s all about the moment to start. It is about now.
The weaving activities actually are not basic activities that were held by the conqueror and the founder. Weaving is an advanced activity that started when the basic activity that helps us survive and hold space has been fulfilled. I remember the dialog with my colleague who came from a village. He told us about his story of how he came to the city, the place that we live now. He was the third generation who lived in this city, and now he is a lawyer.
The Opportunites
His grandfather came to the city with no special skills that are suitable for big cities like Jakarta. He was a farmer, and had to do anything to learn new skills, to survive and had to face a lot of things related to feeding his family. Sometimes he changes jobs every month, started as an assistant to a public transport driver, collecting the bills, changed to a security guard in a night club, etc. “It’s all about opportunities,” My friend said about his grandfather’s quote to us.
The Journey
His grandfather “survived” raising his child until graduating from high school, the basic education standard for Indonesians at that time (80's). His child, a public transport driver. He started to assist his father, and then, with his consistency, his father could buy his own public transport. From one car as his main asset, he grew his transportation business, which made him knowledgeable as a businessman in the town. My friend shared his father’s adjective for the transport business. “The business starts when you have a journey. Your business grows when you have a new journey and destination. Your business will end when you forget people around you.”
The “Now”
Now the story is about my friend. He is a lawyer. He was the son of a person who trained a lot in life. His father knows about good destinations that have good traffic for investing money in buying public transport. He knows about spots that can carry a lot of people in the same direction and different destinations. He knows about how to survive from his predecessor.
“Surviving is like strengthening your step, your awareness, and your ability to wake up and keep your breath stable. It is about now. It is about holding your life in your hand and your rhythm of breath. It is not about hard and soft. It is about yes and no. That’s my grandfather’s way of surviving.”
“Awareness helps my father a lot. He realized he could fall if he failed to recognize what existence needs to survive. Actually, he had a wider spectrum than my grandfather while he talked about destination. Because he also has to think about his predecessor, the asset, and also the family and team that grew in a time.”
“Me, the third generation, will always be in the ‘now’ position. I have to create the best gesture for responding to the situation, relating to our family business. So the best gesture that I find is when I make a good gesture in positioning our business as safely as possible. That is about making our business legal and creating possibilities for our business comfort in our next phase. It is not about the future. It is about the gesture for our next phase.”
The Matrix
I enjoy listening to my friend’s stories. It is not about how many assets they have. And it is not about how to keep maintaining success. I enjoy the gesture and the thought about the framework of the “next phase”. I translated that as future, but he insisted on disagreeing. “The future belongs to God’s Will,” he said.
There were a lot of variables to be put into the journey. I feel inspired in every spot of variable. And it is just like a string. Every variable can be converted into a string of variables that should be acknowledged by all of us. Every string should be weaved as a matrix of acknowledgement.
Happy new path. Happy New Year!