Investing in Talents
By Kristina Roth-Klinck
As the Spiritual Cultivator at Matthew 25, I’ve been working with volunteer groups that come out to repair homes, tend to the soil in our Urban Farm, or work in our Cultivate Hope pantry in our soon-to-be full working grocery store in the Taylor/Time Check neighborhood. As I’ve been working with each group, I’ve been leading an exercise in asset-based community development called, “Head, Hands, and Heart.” I ask them three questions.
First, they find a partner and share something that they can do with their hands. They share back and forth. Maybe they can garden, maybe they can make a mean salsa, or maybe they play guitar. We then share and brag upon our partner in the exercise.
Secondly, they find a new partner and share something they have so much knowledge about that they can teach others. Maybe they know how to can jam, maybe they can woodwork, or maybe they work on cars. Again, we share and brag upon our partners.
The last question I ask them is, “What is something you’re so passionate about? What is something of your heart?” This question I love the most. People are vulnerable and share openly what is speaking to them at the very moment. We often hear incredible things. Some are passionate about justice, some are passionate about creation care, and some are passionate about living authentically. Again, we share and brag upon our partners.
What we realize is that there are so many gifts, talents, and resources in that room. If we needed help in gardening, we’d know who to ask. If we have a question about making salsa, we’d know who to ask. And, if we wanted to learn more about social justice, we’d know who to ask. Asset-based community development focuses on the gifts, talents, and resources that are already actively present in our neighborhood. We can simply start doing this work of neighboring by learning who our neighbors are and getting to know them, learning the resources and gifts around us. We can live into abundance, the abundance of the talent in our community and invest in the gifts that are already there. If we can do that, we can truly thrive as a community and as a city together.