Published papers
How can I improve my communication with my sister, so that I can lead a more loving, consistent and harmonious life with her?
Sarah Porter
Liebe Sarah!
Über Ihre erste Antwort weine ich vor Glück und tief empfundener Freude und bedanke mich herzlich für Ihr Verständnis meiner Forschung. Ich werde mich mit Begeisterung Ihren konstruktiven Denkanstößen widmen und diese nach besten Wissen und Gewissen überarbeiten. Ihre schöpferischen Fragen werden zur Vertiefung und zur Verbesserung meiner eignen Inspiration und des Berichtes beitragen.
Wärmstens fühle ich mich mit Ihnen, liebe Sarah, verbunden, um diesen Prüfungsprozess durch gemeinsame Hingabe und Verfeinerung einzelner Aspekte im Namen der Gerechtigkeit voran zu treiben. Es freut mich, dass Sie Teil Eins und Teil Zwei im wahrhaftigen prägnanten Zusammenhang als Einen kompletten Bericht erkennen.
Im Sinne von EJOLTS und meinem Werteanliegen für weltweite Aufklärungsarbeit, in Absprache mit Moira, der ich herzlichst für ihre Mühe der professionellen Übersetzung danke, werden die Kommentare zweisprachig erfolgen um eine Offenheit dieses Prozesses zur Kenntnisnahme in allen Ländern zu verwirklichen.
Ich fühle mich privilegiert, mit Ihnen über das Journal EJOLTS über ein wichtiges Thema zum Wohle der Menschheit zu kommunizieren und bin Dankbar für jeden aktiven Dialog.
Auf eine gemeinsame, konstruktive Zusammenarbeit freue ich mich sehr. Mit den Besten Wünschen für einen netten Tag.
Herzlichst Ihre Anke
***
Dear Sarah.
First let me say that as I read your response to my paper, I wept with joy. I thank you so much for your profound and kind understanding of my research. I will pursue, with genuine enthusiasm, ways of responding to your stimulating comments that take into account my own knowledge and conscience about what we have now both written. Your creative responses will deepen and strengthen the paper and my own sense of inspiration.
What moves me the most in what you have written, dear Sarah, is how this period of reflection and action, so to speak, is becoming a wider effort towards justice, and that it pushes the aims of justice themselves forward. It really delights me that you see the report as a single entity, parts one and two together, and that you approach them as such.
In what I understand to be in keeping with the precepts of EJOLTS itself, and also confluent with my own values in terms of writing something that has a wider applicability – which in agreement with Moira, whom I thank so sincerely for her trouble in translating all of this paper – I want to keep this part of the dialogue open in both German and English, in order to offer access to this forum to a wider audience. I feel myself to be privileged through the medium of this journal to be communicating with you about such an important theme, which is the wellbeing of all people. I am grateful to everyone for this open dialogue.
I feel privileged through EJOLTS to be able to work on and communicate this important theme and am grateful for this active dialogue.
I take great pleasure in this constructive co-operation. I wish you all the very best. With grateful thanks, Anke.
Hello Anke,
The paper left me spinning! What a gripping story and approach. Your courage and bravery are breathtaking.
I was (am) very moved by your experiences. I will need to re read as there are so many layers and I am working thru my emotions too as I read and then reflect.
You have the basics for a movie script that would be essential viewing by all....
My advice would be present the paper as is......
Warmest regards,
Phil
Dear Anke
This is an overwhelming paper on a number of fronts. The scale of the story is massive, and very moving. I deeply applaud your use of action research to help you to resolve the disruption to your relationship with your sister that was brought about by the Stasi's imprisonment of you.
I have engaged with the paper in much more detail in the attachment which I hope I can paste in to this forum. I've used track changes to indicate how I responded to parts of it; suggested possible additional literature you might want to look at (but not necessarily for this paper! it's big enough already) and a couple of suggestions for strengthening its validity.
I have to say, bearing the suggested '6,000 to 12,000 words' that are in the guidelines, this paper exceeds the limit very considerably. I know the editors have discretion about how big to let papers be in order for the account to be understandable to readers, and this will have to be their decision (I'm just a reviewer). But my feeling is that it does need to be pruned quite considerably. One way might be to reduce the amount of detail around Part 1, perhaps including some of this as an appendix which may or may not be read by those with more time. It's certainly powerful, and I wouldn't want to weaken the paper at all, but I do think its length might be a disincentive to some readers in getting to the end of it, and then they won't figure out how your action research worked its way through in practice.
Please don't take this comment as too disappointing, Anke. You have written a powerful and important paper, and it deserves a wide audience. In my own thesis, I wrestled with issues around 'solitary action research' and some that involves changes in the individual, so I do understand and empathise with your approach. And, having upset my own sister in the PhD process, I understand how distressing it is when family relationships are disrupted! Fortunately, our misunderstanding was nowhere near as serious as yours, and when she came to my oral defence, she did understand where I was coming from at the time that we had our problem. One thing that occurs to me (partly because of what happened with my sister), and that I've put in my feedback to you, is that do you have ethical clearance from your sister to include all this personal communication in the paper? You probably said you did earlier in the paper - but I've had to have several 'goes' at completing this analysis, and can't recall. I would HATE there to be further hurt because material was included that she thought was just between the two of you. I'm sure you must have covered this in there somewhere. You do say your sister had 'at all times the power of veto'; does that mean that she's seen and approved this version of the work?
All the best as you work on the next iteration of the paper Anke. Please stick with it - it's never easy to do editorial work when you've given it your all the first time, but as I say, it is an important paper that deserves a wider audience.
Warm regards
Pip Bruce Ferguson
Liebe Pip,
besten Dank für Ihre mühevolle, einfühlsame Arbeit an meinem Bericht als Gutachterin, ich schätze diese hochwertige Zusammenarbeit als Privileg mit und durch Sie zur Bereicherung meiner Entwicklung. Ihre anerkennenden Worte erfreuen mein Herz und beflügeln diesen wertvollen Prozess des Lernens.
Ich bin Ihnen so dankbar über Ihr Feedback um den Aufbau des Berichtes noch spannender aber zielgerichteter zu überarbeiten. Besonders begeistern mich Ihre zusätzlichen Literaturvorschläge, bitte senden Sie mir die speziellen Link's darüber.
Ihren nützlichen Hinweis zur Länge des Berichtes nehme ich gerne zur Kenntnis, doch damit ist es wie mit einem guten Märchen, es gibt kurze und lange Geschichten. Was interessiert den Leser?, fragte ich mich, was muss er/sie über die Geschichte Deutschlands wissen um einen prägnanten Einblick zu erhalten, einerseits geht es um das geteilte Deutschland, andererseits um die schöpferische Entwicklung meiner persönlichen Aufarbeitung wobei allerdings die Staatssicherheit einen beträchtlichen Anteil trägt.
Der ersichtliche Zusammenhang ist nur darzustellen in einem Bericht um dem Leser völlige Orientierung zu gewährleisten. Andernfalls wäre es, in Gottes Namen, ein wiederholendes Gleichnis der Zerteilung von Deutschland und meinem Bericht, oder: wie ein Herz ohne Liebe, Blumen ohne Wasser oder ein Krimi ohne Mörder! Im Hinblick auf das vereinte Deutschland und einer widervereinten Familie, werde ich Ihre konstruktiven Hinweise zur Präzision des Berichtes als hilfreiche Herausforderung betrachten und bei der Umgestaltung kreativ werden.
Über Ihre persönliche Anteilnahme und Erfahrung, am schwesterlichen harmonischen Verhältnis, freue ich mich besonders, dass zeigt mir Ihr tiefreichendes Verständnis, wofür ich mich rechtherzlich bedanke. Meine Schwester war zu Tränen gerührt und überwältigt von meiner Aktionsforschung und gab mir ihr Einverständnis zur eventuellen Veröffentlichung.
Die im Bericht erwähnten Tagebucheintragungen und Telefongespräche zwischen meiner Schwester und mir sind prägnante und wichtige Details um die Verbesserung unserer Kommunikation beispielhaft und ausführlich dem Leser darzustellen. Und wie ich empfinde, eine wichtige und wahrhaftige Darstellung der Verbesserungsentwicklung des gesamten Prozesses welche keinesfalls fehlen dürfen.
Ich sehe den gewinnbringenden Dialog mit Ihnen als Reifungsprozess und großartige Chance mich zu verbessern somit freue mich auf weitere Anregungen von Ihnen und bin glücklich von Ihnen weiter unterstützt zu werden.
Mit den Besten Grüßen aus Deutschland
Ihre Anke
***
Dear Pip. I thank you for your considerate and empathic response to my paper. I really see this valuable co-operation as a privilege, since through your words, I can develop more fully. Your words of recognition do me good and facilitate this process of learning.
I am so thankful to you for your feedback about enhancing the structure of the paper into something more taut and related to the underlying values. In particular I am enthusiastic about the suggested reading and if you have any specific links you could recommend, I would be most grateful.
Your practical advice about the length of the report is one I will consider seriously, but as it is with a good fairy-tale, there are long and short stories. What would interest the reader, I asked myself. What must s/he understand about the history of Germany in order to be able to retain a concise insight throughout the account? On the one hand it’s about a divided Germany; on the other it’s about the creative development of my own personal journey, on which the Stasi has impacted so considerably in my life.
Something I hold to dearly, is the need for it to be one report, in order for the reader to be able to access it all as a described and explained process. Were it divided up, for example, it could be seen as a symbol of a divided Germany. Like a heart without love, flowers without water, or even a thriller without a murderer! In the light of a united Germany and a united family once more, I will take your constructive and helpful suggestions about the precision of certain aspects as a really helpful challenge, and through the re-editing process, I will try as well to be creative.
For writing with empathy about your own experience in terms of harmony within a sisterly relationship, I was so touched, because you were showing me genuine understanding, for which I particularly want to thank you. My own sister was in tears when she read the report, and quite overcome by the research. She gave me her full agreement for its possible publication. I believe that the inclusion of much detail from the journals and telephone-calls between us are important for the demonstration of an improvement in our relationship, and hopefully are interesting and sufficient for the reader as well. I would like to stand by their length, as I believe they represent the heart of the account.
I look upon any subsequent dialogue with you as a maturation process and a great chance for me to improve myself. I look forward to stimulating discussion with you and am delighted to be supported by you in this way.
With best wishes from Germany. Anke.
Dear Pip, I left this in the wrong place on the site, so here it is again. These remarks are in response to your annotations on the text.
Thank you for your tremendous sensitivity and I thank you with all my heart. Because of the language barrier I can only answer with thanks today, sorry. Your references I appreciate very much, and I shall read Freire Paolo's thoughts on Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
Jack's book on the subject of values, "The increase in the educational" and his work with Peggy Kok look fascinating. Deepest thanks for the link. The work "Survivors of the Nazi Holocaust" by Bruno Bettelheim's will be an inner enrichment and help me to deal with the whole Stasi theme better. Thank you.
Dear Pip, I never doubt the importance of facing my own trauma and always want to have a self-critical attitude. Thank youfor pointing this out as well. It's very important! Yes, I am already dealing with Eric Berne's Transactional Analysis and CG Jung Psychology about transference. Moira has provided me with fantastic literature. It would be wonderful if I could learn something about "invitation" theory. I would welcome information, and please feel free to send me anything outside of the forum and thank you for this valuable offer. I am pleased to share with you as well the profundity of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross.
About your respect to the harrowing fate of my friend who had such a trauma through the Stasi time as well, I would like to thank you as well on her behalf.
Moira is a true critical friend in this phase of my life, and I would like to add in addition that she is my dearest friend. I never met such a selfless, loving, intelligent and brilliant person before. I am grateful for all the insights people are kind enough to give me and specifically I want to tell you how much your remarks mean to me.
A successful start of the week I wish you.
Anke
Dear Anke
I am so glad that you found the references I provided helpful. This will have to be a short reply, as I have a meeting with my boss starting immediately. But I wanted to send you a URL for invitational theory. I have found a scan of an original article by William Watson Purkey, the originator of the theory. It's not good quality but you should still be able to read it. If you want to see how it works in practice, then google "Journal of Invitational Theory" + "Paxton" + "Bruce Ferguson" and you'll get a paper we wrote. The URL is http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED334488.pdf
Sorry for short reply, hope your day is going well!
Warm regards
Pip
Besten Dank für den interessanten Link "Journal of Invitational Theorie und Praxis", ein Genuss diesen Artikel zu lesen. Er stellt eine transparente Verbindung zu meinem Bericht über praktizierten zwischenmenschlichen Kontakt im Vertrauensverhältnis dar, ausbaufähig im kollaborierenden Bildungseinrichtungen mit Focus auf die menschlichen Beziehungen, Wachstum und Entwicklung.
Herzliche Grüße
Anke
Hello Pip. Many thanks for the interesting link to the Journal of Invitational Theory and Practice: a real pleasure to read this article. It gives me a transparent connection to my report, showing collaborative educational pathways, with a focus on human relationships, growth and development.
Warm greetings.
Anke
Hello Anke,
Yes the paper is rather long and so I wonder if it could be presented in parts 1 and 2 across 2 issues? Something to discusss with the editors perhaps.
Warmest,
Phil
Dear Sarah, Pip and the EJOLTS team. I wanted to tell you, I have received Anke's revised paper in line with the reviewers' comments and will be preparing the English version as quickly as I can. I am currently working on a seminar with a new course for which I am tutoring on the Open University, and therefore my time is limited. However, I will endeavour to complete this process as soon as possible. Anke will then write a letter to you and append the English version to it for your final consideration.
Warmest regards to you all, Moira
Liebe Sarah, liebe Pip und liebe EJOLTS Redaktion,
Ich bedanke mich herzlich für das Privileg, mit Ihrer professionellen Unterstützung, diesen transparenten Lernprozess mit Hingabe, Freude und Verpflichtung zur Humanisierung verwirklicht zu haben.
Für die ersten konstruktiven weiterführenden Hinweise spreche ich Jack meinen tiefen und herzlichsten Dank aus.
Liebe Sarah, durch Ihre Anteilnahme und wertvollen Ideen zur Verbesserung des Berichtes veränderte sich dieser zu einem runden Bild mit nun sichtbaren Werten. In der überarbeiteten Version sehen Sie Ihre Anregungen umgesetzt, wie der soziodemokraphischer Kontext, Verbesserung zur Globalisierung und Gedanken über Stollberg. Ich danke Ihnen, ins besondere für Ihre brillanten Denkanstöße auch in Bezug auf die Literatur von Clark Moustakas, obwohl ich ihn im Bericht selbst nicht viel benutzt habe, wird er eine Bereicherung für meine Zukunft haben.
Liebe Pip, für Ihr freundliches, aktives und kreatives Engagement während des Prüfungsprozesses, zur Fokussierung zum Ganz sein, bedanke ich mich recht herzlich. Ihre Anregungen, im Besonderen der signifikanten Bibliografien von Bettelheims Werk, und Paolo Freire im Bezug auf die Menschenrechte, nahmen bedeutsamen, hilfreichen Einfluss auf meine Arbeit. Wertvoll waren Ihre richtungsweisenden Links für die Werte zum Anstieg von Bildungswissen auf Jack’s Website. Die schwierigste Herausforderung war die Verkürzung des Berichtes, den ich als persönliche Berufung und Verpflichtung im Hinblick auf die Opfer der Gewaltherrschaft nahm, und mit spannenden roten fortlaufenden Faden fließen lies, um Ihnen einen germanistischen UND persönlichen Hintergrund dieser Dimension der prekären Zusammenhänge schöpferisch zu verdeutlichen. Durch Transparenz ist nun eine verkürzte Version entstanden, ich hoffe, diese findet Ihr Interesse. Ich bedanke mich herzlich für alle Anregungen zum Reifungsprozess.
Der gesamte Prozess war einer meiner lehrreichsten, spannendsten und glücklichsten Erfahrungen. Moira gehört mein aufrichtigster Dank, mit ihr zu arbeiten ist DAS schöpferischste, genialste Vergnügen überhaupt. Sie führte mich mit unsichtbarer aber fester Hand, Vertrauen und endloser Geduld durch den gesamten Prozess hindurch. Sie gab meinem Schweigen eine lebendige Stimme zur menschlichen herausfordernden Wärme. Wie Sarah es prägnant ausdrückte: Moira gab mir mehr als Unterstützung, sie gab mir das Erlebnis selbst, was ich mit meiner Schwester suchte. Ich schulde dir tiefsten Dank, liebste Moira, für deine Hingabe zur Berufung der Menschlichkeit, Einfühlungsvermögen, Liebe und für alle prompten Übersetzungen, du bist ein Genie!
Liebe Margaret und EJOLTS Team, für die reibungslose hervorragende Zusammenarbeit im Review- Prozess bedanke ich mich sehr herzlich, es war eine tolle Erfahrung. Dem gesamten Team wünsche ich weiterhin viel Liebe, Glück und Erfolg, im privaten Leben und im Beruf.
Wärmste Grüße, Anke.
***
Dear Sarah, Pip and the EJOLTS editorial committee. I want to thank you all very much for the privilege and pleasure, with your professional help, of making this review-process a human one.
For the early constructive suggestions from Jack Whitehead before the open-review process began, with particular reference to some of his current work, I want to express my warmest thanks.
Dear Sarah, through your engagement and valuable ideas for the improvement of my report, I now believe the result to be clearer in its values and to convey a more rounded whole. In the previous much longer version you saw a need for a socio-demographic contextualisation and links with a wider worldview, and the necessity of more detail about Stollberg. This was really helpful. Most particularly I want to thank you for the links to Moustakis’ work, and although I haven’t used his ideas extensively in the amended report, he will remain an enrichment of my life in the future.
Dear Pip, for your friendly, lively and creative engagement during the review process and for focusing on the whole, I am really grateful. Your suggestions - in particular in the significance of Bettelheim’s work and with Freire’s in terms of human rights and suffering – have altered the scope of my report. Valuable as well was the link to Jack’s website. The most difficult challenge for me in all of this resubmission has been the reduction of the number of words in the main text, whose length had represented for me a personal quest to represent historical truths in personal detail, to stand for those who had fallen victim to the unjust state. I wanted to hold up a banner with a red flag, to show something of German history and my personal odyssey. However, I have realised through this reviewing and editing process a transparency that actually enables me to offer a truthful and hopefully still more cogent main text. I have now placed much of the contextualisation and personal histories in the Appendices as you suggested, and the main text now stands well within the word limit. I hope you enjoy the new text. I thank you very much indeed for all your help in this process of development.
The whole process was one of the most educational, tense and happiest experiences ever, but it is Moira who deserves my greatest thanks. Working with her has been THE most creative, stimulating pleasure of all. She led me with an unseen but steady hand, with trust and endless patience through the whole process. She lent my muteness a lively voice through her human challenges and warmth. As Sarah said so eloquently, Moira gave me more than support, she gave me the experience itself that I sought with my sister. So, dearest Moira, I really owe you so much, for your dedication, your deep humanity, and your empathy and love. And for all your ever-prompt translations I can only say you’re a wizard!
Dear Margaret and the EJOLTS team, for the smooth collaboration and review-process I thank you most sincerely. It has been an amazing experience. I wish you love, happiness and success in your personal and professional lives.
Warmest greetings.
Anke.
Liebe Anke (sorry, that's about the extent of my German!)
It has been a real treat re-reading this paper, in its current iteration. I do think it is more focused with your having moved some of the material into appendices, and I also like the way that you have spread the account of your action research more broadly across the paper.
I would like to thank you for the opportunity to interact with you in this public review process, and for your gracious response to my comments. (There are still some minor typos in the text; email me privately if you'd like me to track change these for you - Moira has my address).
All the best for this iteration, it will be over to the editors now. And my love and prayers to you and your sister as you rebuild your vital relationship. As one who has FIVE sisters (and two brothers!) I know how important family relationships are, both in their own right and in terms of our identities.
My warm greetings and blessings to you and yours Anke.
Pip
I am always almost speechless when I read your replies as well as your letters. Your deep and insightful reflections are a gift to us all as are the strength of your spirit in pursuing healing through reflection, communication and sharing. Thank you for your courage and confidence in trusting your process with the public. We all are in this together, you really understand that.
Your hard work with your revisions have yielded a smooth and coherent flow. Congratulations. I like the way you refocused without losing the impact of your imprisonment. Thank you again for this unique opportunity; it has been an incredible honor.
With much love and respect,
Sarah
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