A vision for our future. The council of elders, a system for change.

13 elders elected to give council for the local community to assist in navigating a way forward with wisdom, love, and sustainability.

My story;
When I was a teenager, I came home from a protest against the logging of our local forrest. It was a nasty run in with the loggers and I was dragged through the mud, I walked through the door or our house to meet my mother, I looked battered and bruised and she asked me what had happened. I fold her that I was saving the rainforest because I care about the world. She looked at me with a compassionate, yet penetrating gaze and said “Why are you fighting the mirror son? If you want to make a positive change in this world, just do something so beautiful that others want to be a part of it” Those words went deep into my psyche and never left me. It led me to devoting my life to music and sharing chanting circles all over the world but now, as I'm watching the world go into chaos, I have been losing sleep over this vision, it won't stop coming to me and is waking me up at night so I am sharing it to find my own selfish peace. It is an offering and by no means the truth or nor do I believe we are doing anything wrong. I just have to put it out and I hope you read on and perhaps share it to find the ones who hear the call to step up to implement it.

I am writing this down as a blueprint. I have a vision that small community councils of 13 elders will form and from those councils, the members anonymously elect a representative from their council to be part of a regional council of 13 smaller councils and again, there can be councils for larger areas from anonymously elected members. When I say anonymously, I mean each member of council elects someone they respect from their own council to represent them, but not themselves.
For me, I have felt the frustration with our system. With our decision makers. I have felt the manipulation and deception from those who hide behind the mask of good but do the opposite.

I have watched the infiltration of our lives and liberties slowly grow and like frogs in a pond, we stay in this system as we believe the narrative that it has given to us from people who cannot handle the responsibilities they have taken.
That system is failing us and we know it, yet we still wait for it to change, we dream of a saviour, a great leader who will make it all right but when they step up, they are soon cut down or become like their opposition. You cannot fight a mirror and win. We are not the 99% fighting the 1%. We are the 100% fighting ourselves and its time to wake up.

Just think about it for a moment. Where does all that happens in your life and the world actually appear for you? We receive it only as information through our 5 senses and then create our own version of it WITHIN OUR OWN CONSCIOUSNESS and no where else. Now I must embrace the reality that we have been singing about, that the ancient texts have told us and recently that quantum physics has revealed. This is nothing without you, the observer and creator. So lets not fight or point the finger, its time to create!
We are the one we've been waiting for.

Our old system is based on old science that has now been proved to be false but still the change is resisted. Darwins theory of evolution and survival of the fittest is an old story that has been driving us into extinction and we must discard it like an old skin. The competition for power we see today is the beginning of its end. Ultimately, we created this and we can create our way out of it but not by using the same system and the same consciousness and world view. We must come from a different place.
If we are unhappy with this system, then lets create what WE want.

The council of elders.
Imagine a council of wise elders who are sitting in a circle to give council on issues that we cannot resolve as individuals, or in our homes, they are there not because they have bullied, lied or bought their way into the position, but rather, they are there because they have been recognised by the people who know them in their communities as having the qualities required to give council. The unsung heroes, the wise ones, self aware, compassionate, responsible elder people who we would normally ask for advise that is useful. Real people from the local area that we know, love and trust.
Imagine advise has been put in the highest light of our communities concern for sustainability for the whole of life by these representatives. I want my grandchildren to be guided by them instead of the way I see happening where they are being controlled and manipulated by huge corporations with agendas that do not necessarily serve their best interest.
The councils advise would be offered after all 13 members speak. If it is unanimous or possible choices, all voices will be heard. They will have no leader and no need to argue or compete as it would be simply advise directed for the highest good agreed or of different suggestions by them as a group yet no individuals names would be attached to the advice.
It will be made clear that the council will not be troubled by personal issues or opinionated disputes, those things are the responsibility of individuals or families themselves but rather to offer advise on things that effect us as a community, our environment and all living beings as a way for us to unite on issues that would otherwise be scattered by our different points of view and opinions and reach no resolve. Then, as we have seen, those things are just left open for corrupt organisations to exploit for unsustainable and unwise purposes like profit over sustainability.

This is a clear and simple opportunity for a community to organise themselves in a way that serves.
The council of elders advice will be made public via local news papers and online or any other way to be heard by the community.
In my vision, their advice gradually gains the respect from the community as a non bias and valued representation of the interests of the whole. Slowly, through respect, they will gain the support of the people as a new form of influence on group decisions and become a bridge between community and government. As the respect for their guidance grows, so will their influence.
This is something we can leave for our children and give our elders the opportunity to give back their true wealth to their community.
We cannot keep waiting for a saviour. The saviour is us. If you relate to this, please get involved and create a seed circle..

The seed circle
We will need a team of at least 3 or more people to volunteer as the seed circle, gatherers of the council, also to act as a bridge between the council and community, presenting the council with the issues or questions and sharing their message, recommendations and advise.
This seed circle will be people who will not be elected for the council during this time so therefore have no self interest to influence the selection of its members. This group will only be able to serve their position for a year on year off maximum duration. They will have no leaders and all decisions are by consensus.
Their role is to set up the electing system where they put the word out to the community about the council, its purpose and the search for its 13 members. This will be best done by posters and letterboxes and they can decide weather to use the internet or not.
They will announce to the community that they (anyone in the local community) can elect elders of 56 years of age or older to sit on the council because they believe them as a person of wisdom, good will and virtue. People who have displayed the ability to see the bigger picture above their own personal story. People with evident compassion. People that you choose, as the seed circle to sit for us and offer advise on problems that we cannot solve as individuals or advice on issues we cannot resolve as individuals, families or community groups.
The seed circle will gather the recommendations and asses them first on number of people who have recommended them to but all will be considered as potentials due to their merit. Also attempting to cross all cultural areas of the community including the traditional custodians.
The council will represent the local community and not one section of it.
Then the seed circle will decide on the potential 13 members and approach each elected member to ask their permission to sit on the council until we reach 13. There will be also a backup list or stand-in list to make sure that every month there is 13 present.

It will be made clear that this is not a political group or apposition of anything. Not a substitute for government or police. That this group is a source of wisdom and knowledge that is home grown, honest, caring and has concern for the whole local community untainted by the disfunction of self interest. That has vision of future generations that is beyond financial gain and imposing of power over. A council that stands for balance with nature and cooperation.

Please feel welcome to put this into action with no need of credit to me, I give this away freely.
Like I said earlier, this is a vision that I just had to share and I hope someday, I will be able to put together a seed circle or sit in a council. For this moment, I'm in a foreign country that has its own tribal council that works well and has been an inspiration for this as well as the Native American Indian, Australian first peoples and Rainbow gatherings.
This is only a guide and you can recreate anything for your own community, using this as a model or inspiration.
Thanks for reading.
Much love to you all and our future generations. Kevin James