The Well and the Cathedral

The Well and the Cathedral is a reference to a meditation by Ira Progoff.

A person finds a wonderful well. She feels such wonder at what the well contains, so she uses a rock to mark the location of the well for later.

Another person and another person find this well and also place stones near the well to mark its location for later.

Soon a tall cathedral is built on top of the well and no one is able to access the wonders the well holds.

This allegory works as a metaphor for any number of subjects, but I see the parallel with information access. I take great interest in the way that people search for and use information. I’m interested in taking down the cathedral- the grand structures and impediments that prevent people from drinking from the well- and bringing people directly to what they want and need.