A very CB closing ritual
Hi community, it’s Jo here.
On a sunny and brisk Sunday afternoon at the beginning of December, we held a Closing Ritual for this chapter of Collective Being's life. After almost a decade of working together as a collective, this seemed like the most natural step to take. I've since had time to reflect on how unusual and quintessentially 'CB' this gesture was, and wanted to share a little about the day.
It’s important to note that our team knew about the planned hibernation months in advance. The board and I made a very conscious decision to give as much notice as possible to our whole team. Prior to the closing ritual, we held multiple board meetings, whole team reflective meetings, and individual ‘closing and transition’ sessions with team members.
On the day of the closing ritual, we were hosted by our board chair Sam Loff, who welcomed 25 of us, acknowledged country and complexity, and read a poem from Evelyn Araluen's 'The Rot' to settle the group together.
We took some time for a walking meditation to connect with Country and properly arrive. Sam showed people where to pick wild mulberries whilst other folks went for solo walks.
Due to a colony of fire ants galloping across our picnic rugs, we regathered inside for a grounding meditation and sharing circle. We'd allocated 45 minutes for this, but people had a lot to share, and we sat together for almost 2 hours - alternately laughing, crying, and sweating (it was hot inside).
After a transitional somatic practice, we turned our attention to food. A homemade spud bar was curated, with salads and other touches. Handmade cards were scribbled in and shared. Dishes were stacked and washed, and tea was poured. A raw mango cheesecake appeared (thank you Irene), and disappeared very quickly.
Later, the light began to fade and the mood mellowed. There were lots of hugs and and lots of conversation. Proudly (as we often forget), we made sure to take a moment for a group photo.
Eventually, the day wrapped, but a small cluster of us remained, huddled in a bedroom in Sam's home, testing out a new sofa bed. Finally, we piled into cars and made our respective ways home. I drove home with Priya, our inaugural board chair. We saw an echidna and a fox on our way down the winding road back to the city.
It’s not lost on me that 25 people from our small team showed up for this ritual.
This has always been the hardest thing about Collective Being to put into words - that it’s not only the work that matters, but the way we do the work. There’s a softness to it, but also a fierce accountability.
When I try to explain this, I often feel the need to add, but also - we do it with skill and rigour! We have frameworks, evaluation tools, and policies! A new board member recently said we’re the most organised small NFP they’ve ever worked with. Yes, we prioritise relationships and connection - but we’re serious about the work. It can be hard to imagine deep relationality and professionalism sitting side by side without contradiction.
This isn’t to say that we do everything perfectly at CB, but rather, that there are many things we do well. In our sharing circle, the words intention, rigour, connection, values, and authenticity surfaced again and again. One team member shared that the things that make being her in this world ‘feel hard’ were welcomed as gifts. Another spoke about developing an ‘audacious nervous system’. Some reflected that they weren’t grieving, but ready - that it felt healthy to compost this iteration and make space for future lives of CB.
For us, this ritual did what rituals do best - it helped us to honour and close an important chapter of our collective lives, in order to make space for what comes next.
I’m deeply grateful that this work was shaped by and shared with so many incredible people.
