This week I’ve been thinking a lot about power, leadership, and how these notions intersect with age. This comes to mind when I think about the group that Jessi, Bekah, and I started called Café Arts, which came out of a process of brainstorming ideas about how to provide an intermodal space for safe exploration of self as well as build deeper community connection for participants a part of Café Emmanuel. It has been an interesting experience in group process; Café Arts has been held in a collaborative spirit since its inception. From the design of the flier, to the overall structure of the groups, to our co-facilitation, the dynamics, which have existed and continue to blossom among us, have been the central piece of the project for me. This centrality is further emphasized in my mind by the reality that the group participants have been so varied and sparse throughout its time. Bekah, Jessi, and I have been the stable presence throughout and our group leadership has been quite fascinating and dynamic. Continue reading →