The world sees you in terms of opposites: light and dark, love and hate,
good and evil…
and that is how you learn to see yourself.
You throw yourself from one extreme to another, turning your life into
tragedy performed in the binary rhythm of a farce;
you adopt grand poses and build unbelievable justifications, Don Quixote
fighting conventional windmills…
How precious then is your reflection in the eyes of a child, where
values become unimportant
and you can simply be.
It’s all in your hands:
your future and that of the world;
but I don’t give a shit about the world –
the world is now your problem –
I just want you to be safe…
and happy…
and decent…
and…
It’s all in your hands
and it is my job to ensure
that they are clean.
So wash your hands,
please.
To Calcifer
You go to the beach and build your castles
with sand and water and the joy of making,
of bringing something new into the world
that makes it yours.
The wind will blow drying sand away
and, grain by grain, the castle will subside,
its turrets sliding, flattening and melting
into the beach.
Your mark upon the world,
your proud monument dissolved forever.
What will remain to you when it is gone?
The joy of building
and, of course, the skill
to build another evanescent castle.
You cannot see yourself – you see reflections
and shadows,
they dance upon the waves,
reflected in the eyes of those watching.
You see reflections in these eyes and say:
“T’is I.
My shadow, my dance.
It is unique.
It’s seen and felt by you.
I am unique and I am here now.”
The eyes will close and the waters still,
the sun will die and take away the light
and shadows will go.
What will remain to you when they are gone?
The joy of dancing
and, of course, the skill
to know who you are.
What is it that makes us human?
Is it soul,
technology,
the use of handkerchiefs
or two types of forks?
I think it is language, for it gives us empathy;
the ability to see through other’s eyes
and hence the ability to see something truly new.
Look through the eyes of an artist – it will give you the joy of creating a world.
Look through the eyes of history – it will give you the desire for changing the world.
Look through the eyes of a child – it will give you a reason for changing yourself.
There is something almost unbearably poignant about a child approaching the sea.
The difference in scale is staggering and the fearless curiosity – heartening.
Catching rainbows is very difficult, especially on your own.
They are elusive, evanescent, evasive and often enormous.
So, what I propose is this:
1. Look very carefully in all the right places and find a rainbow.
2. Find someone who cares and show it to them.
3. Catch the rainbow – with two of you, it’s easy!
