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Our little LETS seed was planted just over two years ago and has been slow to germinate. Now at last it appears to have put down strong, deep roots and is beginning to show signs of real growth.
We are based in a very remote, wild and beautiful part of these islands, in a 350 year old Hanseatic trading post which is now a vege/vegan cafe supporting a wild life sanctuary where we take care of seals, otters and occasional stray human being running away from the rat race.
Shetland is a traditional island community which feels naturally suspicious of anything new, especially if it comes "fae sooth"! Although these islands are small, the people are spread out and over the years some of them have become understandably, quite clannish. This is one reason LETS has been slow to flourish.
Another is that Shetland has become very money oriented in an exceptionally short space of time due to the North Sea oil boom which is now very much in decline. As this is happening people are slowly waking up to the damage which has been done to the community spirit which kept these distant islands thriving throughout the centuries.
This is perfect timing for LETS to step in and play its part in helping to relieve the concern people are now feeling for the future of the islands economy.
Now it seems the door has opened for LETS to enter peoples' lives. We currently have a grand membership of 45 and we're growing steadily. We've just put out our first directory for two years and published our revamped membership form and trading slips. In Shetland we trade in 'terns' - after the arctic tern an extraordinary little bird which consistently flies 12,000 miles from the southern hemisphere every spring to breed here on these islands.
We have called LETS a Loving Energy Transfer System and although this appears to knock some people off balance, we believe it to be the true essence of what LETS is all about, as most people discover after trading for some time. The word 'love' does appear to upset some folk, as its what's missing from so many of our lives, and seems to be completely absent from the existing, so-called 'economic system'.
We also recognise this may slow down the pace of new membership, but feel that in the long run, by staying true to this essence and not being afraid to be open about it, we will eventually have a LETSystem in Shetland that allows spiritual and emotional values to thrive alongside the material.
We've felt pretty vulnerable promoting LETS in this way yet feel there must be no compromise when it comes to grounding this new system in a way that ensures it remains true to its pure essence.
We've also found this slower, more steady pace of growth gives us stronger roots, allowing LETS to grow at its own pace without us feeling we have to get out there and force feed it to the people. We've learned the secret is to leave them curious enough to come in search of it for themselves. We can happily say this is now beginning to happen.
A community is formed by connections, but community spirit is based on love. So thanks for giving us this opportunity to connect with you.
Love,
Jan & Pete Bevington
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