As an artist it is so empowering to read this weeks' chapters. In spite of all the feelings and ideas that came up for me, such as: artists are not important, art is a privilege not a necessity, art is a 'nice addition' but certainly not required, in spite of all of these John keeps holding out in that artists and the creative process are absolutely central for bringing about and sustaining social change. WHAT A CONTRADICTION!
Because of the reading I begun to look at the idea of a peace building process with a softer and wider gaze, which I would usually use when creating a performance.  Letting mystery exist? letting delight and fun happen? following my instincts and my inner voice? I know how to do that stuff! Thinking about the possibility of applying these qualities to a peace building process is so exciting! Does this mean that I can take seemingly useless or irrational actions, take a risk and try something new? like playing a cello in a war wrecked neighborhood... How exciting!
In relation to this subject I really enjoyed what Lederach wrote about Naivete (p.115) " Naivete is not afraid of perceived as stupid and has the courage to raise basic questions, both of optimism when all seem impossible and common sense realism when everybody expects peace to happen because a paper was signed."

Also connected to the same idea Lederach writes " The artistic process is fun...There is no scientific evidence that seriousness leads to greater growth , maturity, or insight into the human condition than playfulness. " (p.160)
 I absolutely loved these two observations  and they remind of the roll the fool played in many different societies. The clown, or the folls' roll is/was to expose unspoken truth about humans and social constructs, to mirror, highlight and by doing so liberate people and allow societies to grow.  From my experiences performing as a clown  and also from watching others perform I can say that this roll demands the greatest vulnerability, an ability to laugh at one self and also the willingness to take a risk by pocking at social norms and truths people don't necessarily want to look at. I love how the roll of the clown embodies so many of the qualities Lederach describes as required for peace building.
I also appreciated the reminder that playfulness is many times more useful then going head first dead serious! I know this to be true from my experiences with healing through Co Counseling.  In  Co Counseling many times the way to heal and jiggle old patterns is to find some way to get the client laughing. It is as affective and as direct as crying or talking about it.