The empty space
What happens when you bring 20 people together who don't know each other for 5 days without an agenda (other than meal times)?
It's been two years since Yellow was born. In the bi-weekly online sessions, Rob and I have consistently been surprised and delighted by what unfolds. No matter the theme, people always find a way to make connections, insights, and provocations in what emerges.
After two years of exclusively online sessions, we became increasingly curious about what would happen if we brought people together in-person. So we decided to find out.
In February we held a small and intimate Walk and Talk gathering. But June marked the first large in-person event: 3D Yellow, held at the regenerative farm and estate Dehesa La Serna, Spain.
In the days and weeks leading up to the event (in between building outdoor showers and collecting pine cones) we were filled with excitement and anticipation. What would take place? How would people respond to the open space? Would this even work at all?
It has now been three weeks since the event. As the dust settles, we are slowly integrating the experience.
One thing is clear: if you bring interesting people together and attentively tend to the space with thoughtfulness and care, wonderful things can't seem to help but happen. It's a lesson we have learned countless times already – yet we'll likely still be learning it for a long time to come.
Each day of the event brought with it experiences we couldn't have planned or dreamt of. Spontaneous jam sessions broke out. People danced and sang through the hallways of the ancient buildings. Questions ranging from the deep to the mundane were explored in the chapel. A group gathered to whisper to snakes in the old pools. One person played chess in the shade. Others engaged in long and meandering conversations beneath the setting sun.
When we tell people about Yellow and these types of experiences, sometimes they ask: "What do people get from it?"
While the question is valid, we can never quite answer it satisfactorily. It always varies, depending on the person and context. And the answer changes with time. Like a wine or a cheese, sometimes it takes weeks, months, or even years for themes to settle and insights to ripen.
And still, the event seems to have already borne fruit for some. One person decided to change careers. Another claimed it was enriching and even transformative. People formed new or deeper connections with each other. And we'd guess that most participants caught a new glimpse of themselves.
But the outcomes are beside the point. They are cherries on top of an experience that felt worth doing for no other reason than the experience itself.
So much so that we've decided to host another 3D Yellow next year.
What will happen then? We'll know once we've done it. And even then we probably won't be entirely sure.
