The Long Table

The Long Table is an ongoing fellowship for those who are drawn to the work of regrowing a living culture.

What we have in common is that each of us took part in a series or course with a school called HOME and wanted to spend longer with the people we met and meet others who feel connected to this work.

We gather regularly on Zoom in various combinations, monthly and weekly. Some of us show up to more or less every call. Some of us drop in once in a while, or follow along on the recordings. Some of us have started collaborations with people we met here, travelled to meet up in person, stayed in each other’s homes.

If you’re reading this and you’ve been part of a series with the school, then you are warmly invited to join us.

How to join

We don’t have a fixed membership fee.

Instead, to become a member, we ask you to set up a monthly donation at a level that feels meaningful to you.

(If it helps, think of an amount you’d spend on an evening together with friends who you get together with once a month, or a meal somewhere local that you go to eat.)

What’s going on

Like anything with life in it, there’s a process of unfolding here, so the forms of the Long Table grow and change over time. In the early years, Dougald and Anna were responsible for organising and hosting all our sessions, but in 2023, we’re learning to share these roles in new ways.

Here are some of the forms the Long Table takes just now:

First Monday – our monthly Zoom gatherings take place on the first Monday of each month. The early session takes place from 10.00-12.00 and the late session from 20.15-22.15 (Swedish time). You are welcome to join for part or all of the session – and a few of us have been known to show up twice in one day. These sessions often have a theme. It might be that one or two members step forward with a question or a story that starts the session. It might be that everyone is invited to bring a poem or a short text to share. When there are lots of us, we go into breakout groups for parts of the call. These sessions are recorded, so if you can’t join us live, you can watch or listen later.

The Tuesday call – at 14.30 (Swedish time) each Tuesday, there’s a chance to spend an hour together with other Long Table members. There’s no theme to these session and no recording. We simply take turns to share whatever is on our hearts this particular Tuesday. (In 2023, members in different timezones are hoping to start one or more of these calls at other times in the day and week.)

The Long Table site – this is how we keep in touch in between calls, a Mighty Networks forum where you can create a profile and join in conversations with other members.

The Hospicing Café – once a month, this group gathers around the work to which Vanessa Machado de Oliveira invites readers of Hospicing Modernity.

Look out for other invitations to gatherings and events in the calendar on the Long Table site.