Random Thoughts

[Kernel Sohcahtoa]

I was just Browsing mediate.com and came across this article.  Here's a brief passage:

THE STAGE PLAY

If mediation were a stage play, the parties would be the main actors. The mediator would be the stage manager, and the lawyers would be the supporting actors. But now the supporting actors play a bigger role in this stage play. Or a main actor(party) declares "I don't want to be in front of .....I'll be in my dressing room, stage manager, come see me." In the dressing room the actor(party) says, "Here's what I want. Go on stage and deal with that thing out there." Now the stage manager has the role of star actor and has to deliver the lines on stage (to the other party.) But of course there are mediators that love the role change to star actor. But making sure to be neutral and unbiased. Seems easy since original lines(ideas) will not come from the mediator. It's the parties words and ideas that are delivered by the mediator.

Upon reflection, while I was interning at my county court house,  a particular mediation session stood out to me.  In particular, during the session break of this mediation session, the mediator shared some of her wisdom with me, which, to the best of my recollection, went as follows: the art of mediation is guiding the parties toward understanding and reconciliation without the parties being aware of it.  Thus, during the mediation, it is the mediator's hope that his or her efforts to facilitate a dialog between the parties will promote the safety and self-determination that is requisite for the parties to own their conflict and to engineer and own their resolution.