2010.02.06 07:00 - Malta Retreat: Bertram's report

Wol Euler recovered this session from the autologging database.

 

 

Magic Leimes: Hello pema

Bertram Jacobus: heyy pema ! :-)

Pema Pera: Hi Bert and Magic!

Bertram Jacobus: early in the morning for you pema (?)

Pema Pera: not that early, 10 am

Pema Pera: early in California, though

Bertram Jacobus: ah. good.

Pema Pera: there it is 7 am

Bertram Jacobus: where are you actually ?

Pema Pera: in New York city, at home

Bertram Jacobus: ah - three hours difference !?

Bertram Jacobus: i thought there would only be 1

Pema Pera: the U.S. i s a big country

Pema Pera: five thousand kilometers from coast to coast

Bertram Jacobus: i visited already east and west coast ...

Pema Pera: much longer distance than from your place to Malta !

Pema Pera: you should try to drive by car from coast to coast, then you get a real sense of the distance

Bertram Jacobus: yes ...

Magic Leimes: Hi yakuzza

Yakuzza Lethecus: hey everyone

Pema Pera: Hi Yaku!

Pema Pera: Thanks for your presentation, that was great!

Pema Pera: It was nice to get a sense of looking through your eyes at the Malta meeting

Yakuzza Lethecus: at some point i already mentioned all that, it was an an attempt do dig everything back up at once :)

Bertram Jacobus: but that's strange how one sometimes has totally wrong information - you know that ? i nearly would have Sweared that the difference was only 1 hour (!) (nearly) – ;-)

Bertram Jacobus: heyy yaku ... :-)

Pema Pera: it's a nice exercise to look at a whole week all at once . . . though not easy when so many new things happened

Bertram Jacobus: not many people this time ... shall we wait still a bit or shall i start ?

Pema Pera: good question, you never know how many people come

Bertram Jacobus: that's it !

Pema Pera: fewer at 7 am than at 1 pm, on average

Pema Pera: but there are exceptions too

Bertram Jacobus: ok

Yakuzza Lethecus: you have snow pema ?

Yakuzza Lethecus: when i remember right snow was the issue why sophia couldn't make it

Pema Pera: no, even though they predicted a huge snow storm, nothing happened :)

Yakuzza Lethecus: because she had a shift more or something

Pema Pera: Sophia believed the prediction :)

Pema Pera: but perhaps in Philadelphia it did snow, I don't know

Yakuzza Lethecus: washington is supposed to be in a snowchaos

Pema Pera: Sophia Placebo is the guardian for this session -- don't remember whether she asked to be replaced

Yakuzza Lethecus: ah, right

Yakuzza Lethecus: ssl was the next session

Bertram Jacobus: ah

Yakuzza Lethecus: i mixed that

Bertram Jacobus: okay -

Pema Pera: do you want to post the session, Bert, or shall I do it?

Bertram Jacobus: if you don't mind ... i think, i could start ...

Pema Pera: sure, go ahead!

Bertram Jacobus: would be very nice if you did that pema

Pema Pera: after all, even with few people here

Pema Pera: many other people can later read the chat log

Pema Pera: so you're talking to them as well

Bertram Jacobus: i'm not sure how to do that. would need another explanation cours may be with wol one time ...

Pema Pera: even though they can't talk back

Bertram Jacobus: that was what i thought too pema and

Bertram Jacobus: it's also a nice variation to talk about all that this time with may be only a few

Pema Pera: yes, every size group has its advantages

Pema Pera: with 20 avatars, almost nobody feels like speaking up!

Bertram Jacobus: so i choosed a special form , did some preparation and would like to do a copy and paste part in the beginning - if that's okay for you ?

Pema Pera: sure! As long as you give us a bit of time to read :)

Bertram Jacobus: sure - i try to find a nice rhythm ...

Bertram Jacobus: and so i simply begin with :

Pema Pera: Hi Sophia! Good to see you. We have a theme session with Bert, who is just about to start!

Yakuzza Lethecus: hey sophia P :)

sophia Placebo: Hello all , sorry for being late again

Bertram Jacobus: The malta experience – a report

Magic Leimes: Hi Sophia

Bertram Jacobus: First, i would like to say that i now seem to be one of the last of the retreatans, who has to or is allowed to report from his experiences and may share them in a way.

--BELL--

Bertram Jacobus: I'm sorry that i did not hear or read all the other reports before, there were / are some which i wasn't able to get yet. So please, excuse me when I may repeat the one or other part of our days, may be it's even the most (!)

Bertram Jacobus: Also my well known topic, my lacks in the english language, still give me a feeling of unsafeness and may be i don't express all in a proper way. So please, if there are some questions, please ask !

Pema Pera: in any case, your angle will be different from that of others, Bert, even if you talk about the same situation!

Bertram Jacobus: i had the same thought pema and so i enjoy very much - ty

Pema Pera: and your English is perfectly adeaquate, so not to worry :)

Bertram Jacobus: On the other hand i found it so intresting dealing with this experiences as we do it, that i prepared myself for this session and so i'll copy and paste a big part of my report now here (!) :

Bertram Jacobus: okay - may not be a big part, but a part ... ;-)

Bertram Jacobus: In the good pab tradition, i like to start with the end, with a sort of summary : i'm very pleased and inspired, thankful and happy for all we can share here, for the people involved, for the activities we do and the structures which exist.

Bertram Jacobus: Not only the retreat was a great experience and joy to me but also the chance to meet here four times a day people and a group which is seriously interested in spiritual affairs in a widest spread manner.

Bertram Jacobus: It's so nice, that openness, appreciation, simply being, play as being, exercises as "being seeâ" and so many others are lived here and we all can so explore new fields of happyness, qualities and ourselves

Bertram Jacobus: The retreat was to me often a matter of several perspectives – so on the one hand i was not surprised to find out, that what i had expected (not much exspecting, not limiting, but from former experiences with meeting people from the net in rl) seemed to be the reality.

Bertram Jacobus: On the other hand so much what we were allowed to share in Malta was even more then i had expected ! :

Bertram Jacobus: the people were so wonderful, the arrangements so perfect ( i don't use the word perfect often, but here really it was) " thanks ara, eos, mick and pema ! " and as always also thanks to the rest of us : everybody took part in letting these days be wonderful and great, inspiring and helpful -

Pema Pera: :-)

Pema Pera: yes, I feel the same

Bertram Jacobus: (deep breath) ...

Bertram Jacobus: For me especially, I got some more intense impressions of what play as being can cause : may be a view, for example, at "always look at the bright side of life" (!) ;o) .

Bertram Jacobus: whereas that is only one aspect, for sure, but important to me : getting this brighter view looks like a life time task for me and here and now, with pab and the retreat, i get stuff and examples, so to say "material" to work with and to strengthen the good sides of being.

Bertram Jacobus: Sorry if i am a bit abstract in my narrations , that's my way of being, part of my nature, but i'll try to fill that with a few pictures, especially because i know, for many that helps much more to imagine :

Bertram Jacobus: When i think about "pictures", first now the faces of the members come to my mind.

Bertram Jacobus: It is so nice, that I could see nine of us now and this will be a staying impression for quite a while for sure !

Bertram Jacobus: And i loved this so much : so many very friendly emanations ( ;o) ) - some faces seemed to smile nearly all the time (!) - and, on the other hand, were serious too, considering, contemplating, meditating 

Bertram Jacobus: The talks were so intense !

Pema Pera remembering Mick's warm smile, for example . . . .

Pema Pera: warm and mischievous too

Pema Pera: and Arabella's expressive smile

Pema Pera: etc etc

Bertram Jacobus: hehe. yes mick was very intense in that way - so nice !

Bertram Jacobus: and wol i saw also very often smiling ... :-)

Pema Pera: and Bert too, by the way (^_^)

Bertram Jacobus: and i agree : etc etc. ... :-)

Bertram Jacobus: really ? bert did ? i didn't notice ! :-)

Pema Pera: hehehe

Bertram Jacobus: "but" regarding to the talks ... :

Pema Pera: actually, it is quite unusual to have such a largish group and to have nobody dropping out, sitting on the fence, hiding in a corner

Pema Pera: we all were really involved

Pema Pera: but sorry, please continue

sophia Placebo: hehe

Bertram Jacobus: yes -

Bertram Jacobus: But i must admit, my felt problems with the english language made it a bit exhausting for me – as i had feared in advance - and so at the second day of our being together i had a phase of being quite tired – But –

Bertram Jacobus: but ! ;-)

Bertram Jacobus: that seemed not to be a problem to anyone of the others – wonderful ! It was, as everything, so free : we could walk around a bit in the nice landscape if we wanted to, sit together, trying out practises, being quite, talk – all so free

--BELL--

Bertram Jacobus: I think, i won't be able to tell all my impressions and experiences in this here giving time; it was so much !

Bertram Jacobus: Ara showed us a bit of her isle, the great culture of this little land, the hypogeum, where we were allowed to listen only to the 6000 years old vibes down there with only little lights, and as may be already told, i was asked to make some very deep voice sounds which i learned a bit in tibetan buddhist tradition

Bertram Jacobus:  because there was a room, where was said, deep frequencies would sound there very special

Pema Pera: you did a perfect "ancient priest" performance, Bert!

Bertram Jacobus: hehe. normally i don't do such ...

Bertram Jacobus: but for the group ... first time ... because it was so nice, reliable ...

Bertram Jacobus: so i could do ...

Bertram Jacobus: nd when our tour through the hypogeum there was over, even the man from the officials who had accompanied us, told his collegues, how nice it was, when a group would share and act with that what is given in these ruines – so nice people the maltese !

sophia Placebo: sounds lots of fun was there :)

Pema Pera: it was!!

Bertram Jacobus: it was phantastic, on many stages as i experienced it

Bertram Jacobus: Another intense day may have been the silent day.

Bertram Jacobus: And again i had some very different impressions : on the one hand i found it very natural, nearly normal to have such a day,

Bertram Jacobus: may be also because i had some quiet experiences with others before here and there in my life, but, on the other hand, it came again and again into my conciousness,

Bertram Jacobus: that it is very unusual and seldom, that people come together and share their hours in such a way and it was wonderful. I liked it very much.

Bertram Jacobus: So much more could be told – from ara and mick picking yaku and me from the airport,

sophia Placebo thinks it is hard to keep silent for one whole day when you have chance to meet those poeple for only short time

Bertram Jacobus: but my impressions are

Bertram Jacobus: that in most of the reports here too - which i could read

Bertram Jacobus: all said that it has been a great experience

Bertram Jacobus: and all appreciated it

Bertram Jacobus: so it may be an important part of such retreats

Bertram Jacobus: even when we can't talk to each other with words

Pema Pera: yes, I haven't heard anybody expressing any other opinion, so we will keep that in future retreats, for sure (the silent day)

Bertram Jacobus: somebody told a story later where a monastery changes its structures from a silent convent to talking convent and then one monk said - without speaking i knew my brothers better ... ;-)

Pema Pera: :)

Pema Pera: That was a Trapist monastery

Pema Pera: where they dropped the rule of silence a few decades ago

Bertram Jacobus: to tell the little rest of my copy and paste story :there were so nice hotels in malta , a wonderfuld landscape, nicer weather then was predicted, these oriental and european mixed impressions , the evening in aras home with wonderful pasta (!)

Bertram Jacobus: and pema giving so much inspiration. Or that Eos often seemed so quiet although he could have said so much i guess ;-)

Bertram Jacobus: So experienced people were there and beginners, a nice quality as written in the book "zen mind- beginner mind" which may mean, that in spiritual relations in the end there are no stages, the absolute doesn't know differences and such

Pema Pera: yes, very much so!

Pema Pera: what a nice way to sum it up, Bert

Bertram Jacobus: I think, most of our retreat you heared already before from the other eight reports or you can read them in the wiki – so i would like to stop here . If there are questions - for sure i would love to answer – as good as i can.

Bertram Jacobus: ty for listening / reading :-)

Pema Pera: Thank you!

Yakuzza Lethecus: thx, bert :)

sophia Placebo: thank you bert

Magic Leimes: thanks bert

Pema Pera: (there have been seven reports before; two more to follow, today at 1 pm and tomorrow at 1 pm)

Bertram Jacobus: oh. okay. sry

--BELL--

Bertram Jacobus: while reading all these reports , another idea came to my mind - perhaps i may tell (?) ...

Pema Pera: btw, as for Eos: in order to hear more of the wisdom of Eos and Stim, in both cases, you have to ask them questions, and then they surely will talk -- in contrast to me, who will talk anyway (*^_^*)

Pema Pera: sure, Bert, please!

sophia Placebo: please

Bertram Jacobus: i find and found it VERY intersting, to get intense impressions of the persons too in this way and thought :

Bertram Jacobus: may or could be interesting, to get such impressions from the others too if they would like perhaps . so

Bertram Jacobus: we could perhaps try to organize some more meetings where one person tells his experiences - may be with pab in a whole ?

Pema Pera: yes, that's a good idea!

Pema Pera: it would be a variation on the idea of "theme sessions"

Bertram Jacobus: yess :-)

Bertram Jacobus: i'm really thankful for this group ...

Pema Pera: typically a theme session is led by two moderators -- in this case there could be one speaker, as you suggest, and one person as a moderator?

Bertram Jacobus: also the land which is around us and where we may have these guardian plots -

Pema Pera: and of course our meetings in the Village Pub give us a nice chance to share experiences, though they will not appear here on a chat log

Bertram Jacobus: moderator ? what for ? my idea was : as here, that only one reports and tells his impressions and thoughts and the others ccan ask if they like (?)

Pema Pera: we can do that too, sure

Bertram Jacobus: or - how could a moderator be involved ?

Yakuzza Lethecus: while i have to admit that it would be good if only registered members could read chatlogs from my point of view

Yakuzza Lethecus: when i google my sl name i see pab chatlogs on fakepages

sophia Placebo: thinking of widget example of contra dance

Pema Pera: not everybody finds it easy to start talking about their experiences, and a moderator could help by asking questions every now and then

Bertram Jacobus: ah. good ! :-) i see now ... :-9

Pema Pera: fake pages, Yaku?

Bertram Jacobus: such a nice spiritual world here ...

Bertram Jacobus: and i think, malta, the retraet gave me a very intense kind of push ... :-)

Yakuzza Lethecus: http://www.mpegtech.com/subject/view/id-1584

Pema Pera: me too, Bert, and I'm sure it's true for all of us

Pema Pera: ah, I see, Yaku, well, there is little we can do about it -- everything we publish does have public access

Pema Pera: that was a decision we made right at the beginning; it does have the advantage that everybody can find us, that we are not a closed group

Pema Pera: Magic and Sophia, I wonder what kind of impressions you get from our reports

Pema Pera: not having been there yourselves

Pema Pera: (maybe they are not here either, right now :-) ?

Bertram Jacobus: hmmm -

Pema Pera: (in a chat log you can't see pauses . . . )

Bertram Jacobus: magic sems to have not the best sl connection now and then sadly ...

--BELL--

sophia Placebo: iam here honestly iam slow typer thats all Xo

sophia Placebo: hmm , it certianly was fun and hmm well how a new land usually affect you with its weather soil and poeple , surprisgly everyone seemed happy with sielent day

Pema Pera: sorry, Sophia, and yes, I had never expected everybody to be so happy being silent -- I had expected that perhaps half or fewer would like that

Pema Pera: but both in California in August, and now again in Malta, I did not hear from even one person who did not like it!

Bertram Jacobus: may be because we mostly live in such a over impulsed world ? ...

Pema Pera: welcome back, Magic!

Magic Leimes: thank you pema

Magic Leimes: sorry

sophia Placebo: *:::* WELCOME BACK *:::*

Magic Leimes: thanks sophia

Bertram Jacobus: :-)

Yakuzza Lethecus: ok, danke bertram!

sophia Placebo: sorry for typos*

Yakuzza Lethecus: i am out of now

Yakuzza Lethecus: bye everyone

Pema Pera: bye Yaku!

sophia Placebo: bye Yak

Bertram Jacobus: bye yaku :-)

Pema Pera: I should probably go soon too; I have three more SL meetings coming up today . . . . .

Bertram Jacobus: whaow -

sophia Placebo: :) busy

Pema Pera: in two hours there will be an interesting astronomy talk:

Pema Pera: "From Eternity to Here: The Quest for the Ultimate Theory of Time"

Bertram Jacobus: okay - so i'll leave too. thanks for the opportunity to speak ...

Pema Pera: http://slurl.com/secondlife/StellaNova/206/211/32

Pema Pera: starting at 10 am

Bertram Jacobus: ty. i take the lm ...

Pema Pera: then the 1 pm Malta talk, and then at 7 pm I have my own PaB session :)

Bertram Jacobus: intense ...

Pema Pera: bye Sophia, Magic, and thanks again, Bert!

sophia Placebo: bye all

Bertram Jacobus: so bfn all - cu and may all beings be happy please ...

Magic Leimes: bye pema

Bertram Jacobus: cu