The Genesis of the Manifesto — Some Choices Matter

In The Beginning

I have experienced becoming fixated on the use of a particular word. When that happens, my brain immediately latches onto it and sends me off in a direction I might not have usually gone. This was the case the morning I came up with the idea for this project, which we affectionately refer to as 'The Manifesto.' That morning, I watched a spoken word poem by an artist who has long inspired me. I?had?clicked on a link to his latest video featuring the poem titled 'Heaven or Whatever.' I was immediately captivated by the way he used the word 'whatever' in the context of that poem. The nonchalance of the word 'whatever' and how we use it carelessly as a basis for decisions we have made inspired the 'Some Choices Matter' piece as a counterbalance to the things that matter, especially to me. While a straightforward word was the origin of the Manifesto, the process?to get?a final version of it out is a whole other story.

The Creative Process

My grand ideas don't come to me like light bulbs. Instead, they strike like lightning. If I'm not paying attention, I won't be able to grasp them when they appear. My only hope is to try to capture the shape of the meaning of the idea before it vanishes from my mind. I've always seen ideas developing in my mind like a great big tree of designs, where my experiences, wisdom, and the breadth of what I know are all branches of that tree. Those branches can connect in many new ways and form a tree of many sizes, depending on how strong the idea is. My mind often moves a mile a minute when generating ideas, but I've come to see this as one of my strengths. Once I'm hit by that lightning, and once that idea has been rooted in my brain, I put everything I have into expanding, building, and nurturing it.

The Manifesto

I can't remember now what I had planned to do that fateful Monday morning. However, I do remember exactly how I felt when I was finally able, after years and years, to articulate a compelling answer to "why join a credit union." So here is my "why" of credit unions and cooperatives. I wanted to share, and I hope you will share as well.I?can't even remember now what I had planned to do that fateful Monday morning, but I?can remember exactly how I felt when I was finally able, after years and years, to articulate a compelling answer to 'why join a credit union.'?

So here is my 'why' of credit unions and cooperatives. I thought I would share, and I hope you share as well.

Some Choice Matter - original video --> https://youtu.be/GCGz2_V9FHc?si=eEACI-mByPgL7ycA