The aim of the Friends of Skyros is to link the holiday experience with  everyday life, to strengthen the connections made between people in Skyros and, in doing so, to keep the Skyros spirit alive through an ever renewed commitment to the Skyros principles.

The connections
 
The benefits of a Skyros holiday go far beyond those offered by the usual holiday breaks. People open up in a way daily life rarely makes possible, and, as a result, they forge close connections with each other. Friendships made in Skyros often last a lifetime. The connections are so powerful that are evident even between individuals who never met each other on holiday but simply share the Skyros experience.

Click here to visit the Skyros Holidays website and find out more about the holiday experiences we offer.

To maintain these connections after the holiday has ended, people often join an entirely new network of friends, the Skyros network. They meet for a drink, a dinner, a party, a talk or long weekends in the countryside and some continue the co-listening practice, a Skyros tradition. Many others carry on with their œkos groups which help to keep the Skyros spirit alive and kicking. One such group, in Bristol, has been meeting for ten years – 'we’ve survived weddings, divorces and even death, and we’re still going on', they said.


One place for such reunions is The Grange on the Isle of Wight which people join for short breaks. Its weekend courses are run by Skyros facilitators. Other possibilities include participation in various activities, perhaps a day at the Hay Festivall or a sponsored run for charity. Likewise, there could be a workshop with one of the Skyros facilitators – perhaps a raqs sharqi, a comedy improvisation or a weekend yoga session.

The spirit

Whatever the occasion, gatherings have the distinct Skyros features of friendship, trust and openess in the pursuit of a life that makes sense in a world that makes sense. People are there for each other. The goal is to live life fully in tune with the desires of the heart and the longings of the spirit. Rather than just be there as nothing more than consumers,  commuters, functionaries or clients, people are, instead, encouraged to grow and expand – go for doing rather than having, creating rather than consuming, and engaging with the world rather than the TV characters.

The network

The Skyros network, which already exists in so many ways, will be served, and its activities facilitated, by this website. A few events every year, such as the 9th of April party in London, will be centrally organised, but all the rest will be left at the discretion of its individual members.

The latter can upload their photographs or videos on a specially created album, contact individuals all over the world and inform them about what they are doing, insert blogs to tell an interesting story whether Skyros-related or not, invite people to special events such as the launch of a new book, an exhibition of one’s own work, a theatre show, a concert etc, discuss issues of concern and advance their own views and ideas or just look for company for a weekend in Paris. The range of possibilities is unlimited.

As importantly, the Friends of Skyros website can help to set up œkos groups both in the UK and abroad. Œkos groups provide a platform for some honest communication, support the drive of its members to fulfill their potentials and bring back our sense of common purpose. Those interested can put up a notice on the  invite section of this website. The person who takes the initiative in any given location can also act as the group’s local co-ordinator if he or she so chooses.

For information on œkos please see http://www.skyros.com/life_after_skyros_oekos.htm
For information about co-listening please see http://www.skyros.com/life_after_skyros_co.htm

Interested parties can later on form a committee to co-ordinate the Friends of Skyros activities. For the time being, however, sole co-ordinator at a national level is Pete Webb, the Atsitsa manager in the ’90s and now a resident of Brighton. Contact Pete through this Friends of Skyros website.