the power of the fire circle

“I prefer conversation to communication. Communication, as we have learned from our experience with the media, goes one way, from the center outward to the periphery. But a conversation goes two ways; in a conversation the communication goes back and forth. A conversation, unlike a “communication,” cannot be prepared ahead of time, and it is changed as it goes along by what is said. Nobody beginning a conversation can know how it will end. And there is always the possibility that a conversation, by bringing its participants under one another’s influence, will change them, possibly for the better.”

–Wendell Berry

As you explore the Sapience Project, you’ll notice that many of our conversations are conducted outdoors, around a real campfire, often in remote settings. There’s something special about standing around a fire at night, gazing at the stars and talking with friends.

The campfire conversation is special. As we watch the dancing flames and feel their warmth, we’re struck by the mystery of life and the wonder of the universe. Conversation shifts and the trivial fades away as we reflect on deeper meanings.

The fire pulls us back into ancestry and puts us back in touch with our primal human experience. Suddenly, we are kin with our hunting and gathering ancestors, pondering the magnificence of nature and the vastness of the cosmos.

The campfire calls us to honesty and sincerity. Our conversation feels more reflective, more authentic and more real. This is not a time for boasting, complaining, or casual talk about the minor details of our lives. Rather, this is a time to reach for the center of our experience. In this sense, campfire conversations are like no other in the modern world. They are primal, personal and intensely meaningful.

As you’ll see, the campfire offers a perfect setting to aspire to wisdom and sapience. When distances are too great, we’ll resort to the Internet, but even when we’re stuck behind computer monitors, we’ll seek that same quality of wonder that we experience under the night sky.