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A
Contemporary Tribe
by Laurie Pentell |
My parents spent their entire lives rooted and raising
their family in one city. Today, people are much more
likely to change locales in pursuit of that great job,
or preferred weather, or perhaps kindred community. I’d
spent the better part of my 30’s in Colorado, where
nature and spirituality provided the primary fuel of my
life. Then I returned to my hometown, Chicago. Whomp!
What a cultural jolt. The city had changed considerably
in the interim, and I, too, was not the same kid who’d
headed west on my mountain adventure. For some time I
groped around for a sense of place, particularly my
place in this huge, diverse metropolis. I remember
wondering, Where are my people? This question
turned out to be the seed that sprouted into Sageheart
Alliance… an association of pathfinders and
way-showers who are "doing well by doing good"
in life and livelihood.
Actually, that Sageheart seed seemingly implanted
itself in my mind, choosing me as its chief visionary
and steward. A lengthy gestation period followed during
which the idea of a connecting point for wisdom-sharing
professionals kept my synapses firing for the cause. It
was a full six years later—after I left my corporate
confines—that Sageheart Alliance at long last took
root in the Midwestern urban landscape.
The quest to build an evolutionary organization like
this one was fueled by my hunger for a community of
creative entrepreneurial types like myself who are also
inclined to view life through a spiritual lens; people
who genuinely feel that their lives are an expression of
higher consciousness stepped down to the frequency and
amplitude of this plane. Modern mystics, essentially,
with their feet on the ground and their sleeves rolled
up ready to contribute to the betterment of the world.
A few years ago I encountered the phrase cultural
creatives, coined by sociologist Paul Ray, PhD., and
it totally resonated with the Sageheart vision. Cultural
Creatives (CCs) tend to care deeply about things like
ecological sustainability, social justice, peace,
relationships, self-actualization, spirituality, and
self-expression. Their emerging values and lifestyles
are impacting the very business of life, and are shaping
a new agenda for the 21st century. They are creating
a new culture—one that may just shift the global
tide from the brink of disaster to a sacred stewardship…
from the nuts and bolts of interpersonal relationships
up through the complex nuances of conscious business,
global peace, and natural balance. Sageheart Alliance
embodies the CC spirit. "CCs R Us."
Sageheart forums are opportunities for us to meet and
learn and network. At each session, guest visionaries
share their particular wisdom in a way that showcases
their professional service. Forums are enjoyable ways to
get a beat on what people are doing, and what their
skills are. It’s no secret that kindred spirits like
to do business together, and form creative alliances for
any variety of collaborations. Sageheart forums provide
a context for such possibilities to emerge.
We now also have a website up and running, with
expansions on the way. This has been a long time coming
and was highly anticipated. It provides a cyber salon
for CCs to connect outside the forum format to flow
energy and ideas.
Ultimately the Sageheart vision includes a versatile
meeting/performance/gallery space, with adjacent offices
that can be time-shared and/or used as business
incubators. Our programs and events are growing in
quality, frequency, and value to the conscious community
of Chicago. I’m also burning to get into webcasting—radio
and video. There is so much talent to be tapped and
expressed, and it seems quite doable with the Internet!
Sageheart exists to inspire and encourage heartful,
ethical, creative expression in life and livelihood. It
honors an alternative bottom line by which to measure
success and fulfillment—one oriented toward intrinsic
meaning. I wasn’t born into it, but it is my tribe of
choice.
Copyright © 2001
Laurie Pentell. All Rights Reserved.
Laurie Pentell is the founder/director of
Sageheart Alliance. She is a lifelong questing spirit who views life as sacred art and humans as artisans who continually co-create the
lifescape.
Her various modes of professional expression include
broadcasting, software and website development, and producing self-actualization programs with luminaries of the human potential field. She considers herself a writer foremost, and is available to explore potential collaborations on creative projects that are resonant with the tone of
sageheart.com.
It is Laurie’s passion to explore the infinite nature of reality, celebrate the boundless capacity of the human spirit, and co-create opportunities to build a better world—one that works for all.
Email Laurie at:
laurie@sageheart.com.
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