"Embracing Vulnerability" was commissioned by Constellation Men’s Ensemble and premiered on their 2018 NOVA concert entitled "Hope in our Time. "This topic has been difficult for me, not because I am unhopeful or particularly pessimistic but because of the current friction between hope and truth in our society. On one hand, hope requires a foot in ideology, an imagined potential that can be achieved or created. On the other, truth is often the thorn in hope’s side. Truth can reveal the latent and seemingly unchangeable parts of our inherited institutions or show the vastly different subjective reality of another person. Truth is immensely important toward building hope. Change is only possible through a transformation of what is already present in society. We cannot ignore difficult problems or different perspectives and expect hope to come to fruition. We have to engage truth from a vulnerable and open place; we have to listen.
Listening, in a holistic sense, is the recognition of distance between individuals and a simultaneous attempt to occupy those liminal spaces collaboratively. This type of listening requires introspection, respect, and vulnerability – three things seemingly absent from current public discourse. But listening is a virtue, something we can practice and improve in ourselves. As a mutual and collaborative effort, listening synthesizes hope and truth. It helps us recognize at once the current reality and how to transform it. My hope for our time is to create a culture of listening where subjectivities are respected, where people are open to seeing their own flaws, and where we continually learn from one another.
"The thing about real listening is that it requires vulnerability"
-Krista Tippett
Premiered and Commissioned by Constellation Men's Ensemble-May 11/12 2018.
Listening, in a holistic sense, is the recognition of distance between individuals and a simultaneous attempt to occupy those liminal spaces collaboratively. This type of listening requires introspection, respect, and vulnerability – three things seemingly absent from current public discourse. But listening is a virtue, something we can practice and improve in ourselves. As a mutual and collaborative effort, listening synthesizes hope and truth. It helps us recognize at once the current reality and how to transform it. My hope for our time is to create a culture of listening where subjectivities are respected, where people are open to seeing their own flaws, and where we continually learn from one another.
"The thing about real listening is that it requires vulnerability"
-Krista Tippett
Premiered and Commissioned by Constellation Men's Ensemble-May 11/12 2018.