Grim and evil
A friend of mine described what I’ve written in this site as ‘a bit too riotous’. ‘But, for a rocker, it’ll do’, he added. I am aware of the grimness and anger written here, but it’s time for one more irated piece now.
An assignment in English class. ‘What would you like to do in the future?’ One of my colleagues asks me to translate his work. Oblivious to what I was about to read, I took the piece of paper he handed me. Here goes: ‘I wanna open a firm, and be my own boss. Also, I would like X (another colleague’s name) to be my workmate.’ The end. In the tenth grade, this is the dream and aspiration level… Should I generalise or not? Well, here’s another piece of evidence… During the same class, it was time to translate X’s assignment as well. Here’s a sample of his ideals: ‘I’ll buy a truck. Make transports, and with the profit earned I’ll open a timber factory’. All in all, this may be the real thing, the step-by-step approach on life that could turn out successful. Why the devil worry about the future, make far-fetched plans and so forth? Use this instinctual view, as a monkey during its jump thinks only about which branch to grasp next.
OK, he’ll buy his truck and he’ll probably make loads of money. But it truly did struck me to understand the ‘Weltanschauung’ (vision of life) of one of my congeners. What, I wonder, are his anxious questions about life, death, God etc, given his age now? Or, even better, do those questions exist? Because it seems that there’s an inner vacuum perduring in him. How else could that given answer in that bloody class be explained?
What more can I say? That I wish for a country in which money won’t be the main concern and in which an average teenager will have higher goals than to become a driver? In which patriotism will be more than a biannually conveyed notion – on the 1st of December and the 24th of January… In which patriotism will have a reason, not just a face – a true country for which to strife…
‘I’ve seen, the future, brother, it is murder’…
What if?
Aristotle once said that ‘to wonder’ (τò θαυμαζεîν) is the origin of philosophy. Perceiving the world ingenuously, as a newborn would do, wondering, is a true source of knowledge. In this respect, everyday life in this little mountain town is very philosophical. In the end, isn’t ‘WTF?’ a form of wondering?
Starting with an example, I went to a newly opened bar to have a cup of hot chocolate. The waitress comes and leaves on the table something that bewildered me. First of all.. it wasn’t a cup, it was a glass – steaming hot, of course. Then.. above the chocolate was a thick layer of whip cream. The whip cream was sprinkled with some caramel sauce. And now comes the touch of genius – a slice of lime was there too. Now let’s get phenomenological. Living in Romania means you must always seek to be original. If it means defying common sense, even better… You plan to open a new bar? Open it, and serve there chocolate with lime. I’m sure nobody ever thought of that before.
‘What if?’ – this is the golden principle. Sure… this was the starting point for many of the world’s greatest inventions. But, the ‘romanisation’ – that turned Renault into Dacia, for instance – puts her mark on this concept. Let’s innovate where there’s nothing left to innovate. Amalgamate incongruously everything (there’s another restaurant here in which the walls are adorned with Slavic writings, Greek bas-reliefs, Turkish swords, African bow and arrows, Roman-style painting… and… la pièce de résistance… Romanian voivodes’ portraits), and you will surely be labeled as ‘original’. Don’t fear of being ridiculed, for others lack critical sense as much as you do. Just take a deep breath… and something truly unique will come out of your mind’s parturition. And the fun part’s you needn’t have competence to be taken seriously. If you happen to have it, rest assured, others are long since in a position that may be rightfully yours. In a country where sportsmen have more media coverage – and, subsequently, more authority – than writers, why the heck do I wonder that there’s lime in my chocolate? After all, how much can that poor lime drink?
Season’s grievings!
I guess I am supposed to start with ‘Now that the holidays have passed, with good and bad things…’, as I have seen it is quite trendy when it comes to writing about them. Sorry to disappoint you. Yes, we all know they have passed, yes we all know they’ve had their ups and downs. And what I certainly know is they’ve had carols. Wherever I went, from bars to parks and even in the goddamn streets, the a-caroling was ubiquitous. Carols in the train station, carols in buses, carols in cabs. Everyone is better these days, sure, but is it too much to ask for a slight variation in music? No matter what your musical background is, from rapper to houser or ‘manelist’, carols are a must this time of the year. Well, guess I’ll never get the gist of this kind of Christmas spirit. Why has Christmas become so sanctimonious? Couldn’t gifts be given silently, without asking or expecting a reward? Can’t carols be understood and sung deep within, quietly, understanding the miracle, not shouting it… Well, I reckon it’s part of being a Romanian – lacking measure. It’s a default setting. It may seem a reminiscence of Latin spirit, but nowadays it’s just a instinctual way of living. Is it Christmas time? Let’s sing and listen to carols.. continuously. Is it New Year’s Eve? Let’s party like there’s no tomorrow… Speaking of New Year’s Eve – ever notice how humans are the only ones to celebrate? For the rest of the planet, for all beings, time flows as it did before, there are other cycles, much more profound, those of life, to be followed…
I wish you dreams in this new year. Not fulfilling wishes, because that’s killing them. May you dream, may you fight for your dreams, may you keep them alive.
And, as I always say – May you have a new year!
