There is a buzz.
You can’t put your finger on it. People are engaged in conversation — some louder than others — and all you can catch are snippets. Those snippets are sparks — of the good kind… the kind you want to transfer to many other conversations and relationships.
An individual speaks out with words of announcement and information. Murmurs of agreement arise from the small assembled group. A brave dissident voice squeaks out an opposing view, or an angle not yet mentioned, and positions it as worth looking at — apologizing for playing devil’s advocate, but only because etiquette requires it. The fact is, alternative viewpoints are both required and welcomed, and everyone knows this. This brief exchange is a polite and ethical pretense in this context.
More engaged conversation breaks out among the crowd — in pairs, threes, haphazard tables of four. You hear more snippets, but can’t quite garner full sentences. The phrases you do hear are ones you are familiar with and want more of, so you join a group which is talking about something conceptually so grand and cerebral you quite can’t wrap your head around it, but this does not intimidate you. Rather, it excites you and so you ask questions, which are energetically answered by those surrounding you, who are pleased to have more to say in response. Questions are then asked of you, too, which is good; this is a productive and inspired dialogue.
Focus is redirected back to the individual who spoke earlier. Pointed questions are asked. Honest responses are given, and lively discussion ensues over coffee, biscuits, and smiles until the last person slips out the door and onto the street.
——————————-
Two nights in a row I’ve had the opportunity to be in social, purposeful environments where I was surrounded by like-minded people. Each involved an NGO: one established and long-running, the other brand-spanking new. Both had something special which is nearly impossible to describe succinctly.
It’s a vibe.
It is that feeling you get when you are with the “right” people — whatever that means for you. When you feel like the conversations you’re having and the information you’re exchanging is part of something much, much bigger and that you’re contributing to something that will push you, them, and the world foward, making everything better in the process.
It’s that feeling you get when you realize a string of coincidences have lined up.
It’s that feeling you get when you meet someone whose interests and philosophies are aligned with yours and you suspect that together you can do incredibly useful and focused work of good.
It’s all of that.
And more.
It is energy — of the good kind.
And I love it.
