Veteran Voices Community Reflection and Sharing Space on Afghanistan
This session is created for veterans, family of veterans AND civilian community members to share feelings, reflections, poetry, and support each other in community in connection to the current and past events happening in Afghanistan. The session, led by Jenny Pacanowski and Omar Columbus, will include an opportunity to discuss the events in Afghanistan through a facilitated conversation, utilizing prompts to encourage a greater connection to self and community agreements to maintain a space of compassion and non-judgment. The session will conclude with a meditation led by Mary Jo McConnell.

This session is designed as a safe community space for artists in the Poetic Theater Productions and Women Veterans Empowered & Thriving communities and will be held in a Zoom meeting setting. Artists in the community are welcome to join for the full 2 hour session or for any portion they are able to or would like to. Entries more than a half hour after the session begins will be let in from the waiting room at times that are least disruptive to the sharing. We kindly ask that if you are arriving late or leaving early, you enter and exit with your camera and microphone off. Feel free to write a brief goodbye in the chat, but do not interrupt others' shares to say goodbye.

Sharing is not required, but respectful, empathetic, community-focused listening is. Those interested in joining us can fill out this Google Form and must agree to the community agreements to receive the Zoom link.

In this time of international turmoil, we want to offer space for our community and amplify veteran voices. We will be holding a gathering for our community members to share their work, needs, emotions, rage, questions, healing words, and anything else that needs to be shared right now.

Veterans and family members of veterans will be given the first round opportunity to speak and then we are hopeful that our civilian allies will also contribute to this much needed conversation about the cost of war and its effects on everyone.

We are holding a community gathering via Zoom on Sunday, August 22nd at 5:00pm ET. We will start with artists who would like to speak/share/discuss, holding the floor for about 4 minutes each, and then open the space to group discussion. If you are interested in attending, please RSVP through this form, and the link to the Zoom call will be sent out on August 22nd shortly before 5:00pm.

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Email *
Name *
Would you like to speak/share/spark a discussion during the gathering? *
We are offering artists space for ~4 minutes to share whatever they choose
Will you be able to attend the full two hour session? *
How did you hear about this session?
Any questions/concerns/thoughts you would like to share?
Community Agreements
Please read these community agreements and reflect on whether you're willing to agree to them. We require all participants of our Reflection and Sharing Space to agree to these before entering the space.

VV and WVE&T Community Agreements

We secure this space to the best of our ability by:

1. Being non judgmental of self and others
2. Being kind to self and others
3. Being compassionate towards self and others
4. Empathetic listening (Empathetic listening involves listening to others non-judgmentally and with emotional connection, while still maintaining your own boundaries of self. It does NOT mean internalizing other people’s struggle or journey.)
5. Try not to take things personally.
6. Don’t apologize for taking space.
7. Take care of your body and self. (bathroom, food, breathing, step away)
8. Be Curious, ask questions.
9. Boundaries: if someone asks you a question about the experience you read or about you. Practice creating a boundary; you don’t have to answer.  
10. You are the expert of your experience.
11. This is YOUR SHARING SESSION; Create what YOU NEED within the community agreements and feedback guidelines.

These community agreements are a PRACTICE. If/when they are broken, it is a moment to forgive yourself and begin again. Live to LOVE yourself, then others.

I agree to abide by the Community Agreements during the course of the Reflection and Sharing Space. *
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