IMYM’s Annual Gathering wrapped up on Sunday, June 15th with breakfast, worship groups, and a final meeting for worship. Friends hugged in dusty parking lots, sack lunches and suitcases in hand, and traded promises to stay in touch. IMYM’s next Annual Gathering will be held at Ghost Ranch June 17-21, 2009, with early days programming the 15th-17th (workshops, youth programs, and extra time at Ghost Ranch.) All Friends are invited and encouraged to attend!

Saturday, June 14th
Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu NM

A morning business meeting covered an impressive amount of material, too weighty to list off here. Look to the September issue of Western Friend for articles of substance! High altitude + lots of business makes for hungry weighty Friends, and those present at the meeting hustled to reach the dining hall.

In the afternoon, IMYM was called to practice compassionate listening as a community. Though exhausting, the chance for speaking and listening helped to address some tensions between Senior Young Friends and others in IMYM. Friends have learned there is work in compassion, and there is a need for listening to one another’s stories in IMYM.

Interest groups again covered a wide range of topics, including a group hosted by Western Friend staff and board members on the ministry of the written word. IMYM Friends were encouraged to not only pursue writing as an individual practice or ministry, but to be open to sharing the fruits of their labor with others. Editors past and present spoke of the potential for editing to be an invitation to enter into a spiritual relationship with the writer, and of editing as a contemplative practice. All Western Friends are invited to consider if they are led to contribute to Western Friend.

Closing worship occurred before dinner, and IMYM Friends spent the evening delighting in one another’s gifts during Creativity Night. Skits from Friends of all ages, music, singing, dancing, and even bagpipes graced the humble stage in front of the packed-to-the-gills room. Adult Young Friends posed a formidable challenge to Senior Young Friends’ long-held post as creators of the cleverest skit. Will the SYF’s be able to top “The World Compassionate Listening Playoffs?” Tune in next year to find out! Photos from creativity night will be posted soon.

Friday, June 13th,
Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu NM

Today IMYM Friends enjoyed time to play together during an afternoon interest group titled “Intergenerational Color Exchange” and at an evening contra dance (with a live band!) Photos from both are available on the Flick photostream. An array of slightly more serious interest group topics rounded out the afternoon, ranging from Native American concerns to a well-attended discussion of continuing IMYM’s pilot program on spiritual formation.

Friends also heard of the challenges facing the IMYM-AFSC Joint Service Project, a report from the Spiritual Formation Program Committee (now laid down), and considered next year’s budget. Friends Peace Teams and FCNL representatives shared from their experience with great enthusiasm.

The theme of compassionate listening carried over into the morning worship groups. Many Friends have experienced deepening of both their connection to the Spirit and to one another through this theme. Afternoon intergenerational worship sharing groups hosted by the Senior Young Friends (high school-early twenties) provided Friends of all ages with the opportunity to connect.

Thursday, June 12th
Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu NM

The last light has finally faded from the red and gold sandstone butte across the field from Ghost Ranch, but there are still at least thirty Friends gathered around an outdoor fireplace, singing their hearts out. If there is one thing that is unique to IMYM, it is their extraordinary musicianship. Mandolin, viola, guitar, recorder, a host of other instruments–and, of course, the beautiful singers of all ages. Their music floats far out across the fields and up the mesas.

It’s a fitting finish to a day which opened with a moving presentation from Leah Green, co-founder of the Compassionate Listening Project. Since 1990, the CLP has taken 23 delegations to Israel and Palestine to simply and deeply listen to the pain and conflict experienced by both sides. Leah shared many stories from her experiences leading these delegations. Many Friends were moved to attend her interest group that afternoon.

A few quick quotes from Leah:

“Compassion is the most powerful and most overlooked tool for reconciliation.”
“Listening is not just a radical idea, but a pragmatic one.”
“There is a universal lack of education in listening skills. They need to be taught, right up there with math and history and art. ”

A full writeup of Leah’s talk will be in the September issue of Western Friend.

Later in the afternoon, Young Adult Friends spent some quality time dangling and wobbling up to 40 feet above the desert floor on the high ropes course, while other Friends attended interest groups on an array of peace and social justice concerns, talked, and went for hikes.