(mid tempo music)
- Okay, the next part of this,
I'm going to talk about experiencing the circle.
We're going to experience a couple
of community building circles today,
meaning passing the rounds and we're starting with values,
which we've just completed.
I am the Circle Keeper and so is Dr. Bowling.
Our circle keeper role is not to facilitate the circle,
but act as a guide that introduces the circle prompts
and ensures that the circle remains a safe place
by reviewing the circle guidelines,
which I will do in a minute.
This circle is a container that can hold as much,
or as little as people feel like sharing.
The guidelines will help to ensure a safe space
for connection and learning.
The guidelines are, respect the talking piece,
listen from the heart, share only your experiences,
perspectives, feelings, not those of anyone else,
listen from the heart,
let go of stories that make it hard to hear one another,
be open and nonjudgmental.
What happens in the circle stays in the circle.
It's kind of like that Vegas rule (chuckles).
Trust you'll know what to say, no need to rehearse.
Say just enough.
Be considerate of time.
We don't want the long version, we want the short version,
the one you tell when you're quickly getting off the phone,
not the long version
because we are limited with time of course.
Are these guidelines that I just read okay
with everyone here today?
Thumbs up, okay.
The first round then will be a question.
And we're gonna pass the talking piece.
I'm gonna ask you in terms of your profession
or your career, what was, or is your proudest moment
in your career or your profession,
and why that moment is proud for you?
I'm gonna start so I can give you the example.
My proudest moment,
I worked for the U S Department of Education
as a White House Appointee.
That wasn't the proudest moment, my proudest moment
because I was kind of the person that went ahead
of the President whenever he came to any of my states
to make sure everything was set up,
make sure the right people were there.
And after I finished in New Mexico, he was there.
He gave a talk, full audience.
I was sitting on the side,
everybody's waving and trying to shake his hand
and I was just standing there.
He hugged me and said, "Good job."
I almost melted right there.
I said, "Oh goodness."
But of course your family gets you to be humble real quick
'cause when I tell that story, they said, "Okay, right."
That was my proudest moment (laughs).
- He said he had never had a male that was consistent
in his life.
And he said, "I'm looking up to you
"and you kind of made a big difference."
That particular one was real special to me
because I didn't know I was reaching him like that, so yeah.
- "The entire community is gonna petition
"that they bring you guys back 'cause we need you."
So I knew that the work that we had been doing was effective
and they needed us, so that was my proudest moment.
- I do a lot of work
with community health workers
that I know you know what they are, they're promotoras.
And my proudest moment is when they come and hug me.
I feel like I'm the best person in the world
when they give me the hug.
- Just recently, one of my workers just came in
and popped in and was like,
"You know, you really do know what you're doing.
"I trust you.
"You make some good decisions."
And that was my proudest moment,
kind of getting that validation that I can do my job.
- I worked for CPS for 20 years.
One of my proudest moments,
no matter what my evaluation says or what adults say
is when that child comes to me
and said that I made a difference.
- My proudest moment was probably a couple of years ago
when I was approached
by a young physically handicapped African-American teenager
and she wanted to participate in a debate competition.
But I worked with her, we worked with her handicap
and what happened was she won the entire tournament
and she represented the school on the state level.
And it just makes me really proud to watch her succeed.
- "And you are the reason that I am a social worker."
And she is now working on her Masters in Social Work.
And so that's always pretty cool when that happens.
- One of my students wrote me a note
that said that because of our class
and because of our time together,
she felt like she knew
that the world was gonna be a little bit harder on her
as a young Latina and as a young woman of color,
but she also felt more prepared to take that on.
- The stories is what makes the circle.
Every one of us had a great story
and I was ready to applaud.
But as the person that's sitting here as the Circle Keeper,
I can't say anything
and no one else can because what are we doing
when the people are talking?
Listening, we have to listen when those people are talking
because we're actively listening.
We're not listening and playing with our phone,
which is why I typically don't let anyone else in.
We turn the phones off and all those kinds of things
because otherwise you're not in this moment
and I need you to be in this moment, nowhere else.
This is where you need to be.
(mid tempo music)