This the first in a three part series I began in November of 2020, before I decided to stand for the presidency of HIRRA in May of 2021.
One of the more memorable moments I’ve experienced on Hornby came at the end of a contentious HIRRA meeting more than a decade ago.(1) At the end of the meeting, after some sharp words had been exchanged, one participant reminded all of us that we are a family together and needed to remember to treat each other with kindness and compassion. As she said this, I saw one of the two people who had exchanged words get up, walk over to the other person, and apologize. This is Hornby at its best, I thought at the time, and still do.
Lately, I’ve been noticing that things seem to be changing. I have seen younger people disparaging elders as being resistant to change and elders criticizing younger people for not being sufficiently involved in the community, neither of which is accurate. I’ve heard simple questions being interpreted as attacks, resulting in defensive responses. I’m seeing long standing friendships being stressed to the point of breaking. I’m hearing of individuals acting either on their own or as members of boards lobbying behind the scenes, resulting in more blaming and confusion. The most recent public example I experienced was when questions about the timing of grant applications were interpreted as statements of displeasure and then of a desire to deny an opportunity to one community endeavour in favour of another, when in fact no one was questioning the value of either program.
Much of this began when some of us began to raise issues around sustainable practices, the capacity of Hornby’s infrastructure, and how to prepare for and adapt to the major changes in our climate which now seem inevitable. It is an urgent and, I admit, a difficult issue. Facing it means to openly address our visions and plans for the future and, in particular, how much of our vision consists of a continuation of the assumptions that have underpinned our local economy and the values we think we share. I also have no doubt that this already difficult process has been made even more difficult as a result of the uncertainties and anxieties brought on by covid-19.
I would like to call for pressing a reset button and starting again. On Hornby, as in a family, arguments are best resolved not by winning and losing but rather through forgiveness, compassion, and a willingness to start over. Many of us are hoping for a renewal of our community vision, which began with an unsuccessful attempt when I chaired HICEEC and surfacing again over the past months both within HICEEC and in other places in the community.(2) I think we can all benefit from this exercise provided it is shared by the entire community, both in terms of organizational and personal stakeholders (i.e. all of us) and by leaving old grudges at the door, as the HIRRA statement of meting etiquette begins.(3) I would add one more: that we learn to ask questions before making judgements and listen carefully to the responses to those questions.
Daniel Siegel
FOOTNOTES:
1. HIRRA is the Hornby Island Residents and Ratepayers Association. Ratepayers are those who pay property taxes. Residents was added to include renters in the association who pay property taxes as part of their rent. There is no charge for membership and a 42 waiting period between joining and being able to vote.
2. HICEEC is the Hornby Island Community Economic Enhancement Corporation. It began as a committee of HIRRA and, in that capacity, conducted an extensive consultation with the community culminating in a vision of what Hornby could look like in 2020. If you are interested, you can find the report and the HIRRA code of meeting etiquette at the end of the next note.. I chaired HICEEC for a while beginning around 2007.
3. The HIRRA code of meeting etiquette, sometimes called Roberta’s Rules of Order, was created in order to soften the tone of meetings which often became rancourous. When I arrived on Hornby in 2005, the code was already in use and meetings were so tame many came to see them as boring! You can download them here: https://hirra.ca/about/constitution-policies/