Transcript:
There is a very toxic narrative out there, a viral one to be exact. Words that turned into day-to-day language on the news, in all conversations, in our homes even. We might want to be aware of the monster we are actually creating by pronouncing those words. Let’s hear them, one last time... “He died from Coronavirus, X people died from coronavirus”. Iss it so?
My name is Camille, you’re listening to Cosmic Dynamics, 5 minutes of exploration on art, change & the music of the universe
The stories we tell, the words we choose shape reality. You heard this somewhere I’m sure. Yes? Maybe? Take problem-solving for instance: if you fail at formulating the problem, you fail at solving it. Yes? Makes sense? I’m glad you agree.
Ok, Now let’s use our imagination for a minute: Imagine that you developed the addictive habit of crossing the highway eyes closed. Starting from one side of the road, you close your eyes, take a deep breath, and you go for it, walk until the other side… hopefully. You do it every day. Until… you get hit by a car, of course. What should the article say on the newspaper, how should people report the situation? What’s the story? “He was hit by a car? he died in traffic?” Or “His habit of crossing the highway eyes-closed finally killed him?”. You see where I’m going with this? The problem is not that there was a car coming fast! It’s a highway! The problem is this strange habit of crossing the highway eyes closed. Would you agree? Makes sense? Right.
Now if this was happening 1000 times a day in your country. Drastic measures trying to address the root cause of the problem would focus on the question… “why is this happening?”. If the stories in media, in the scientific community, and in society are constantly spreading the words “he got hit by a car, another 10 people got hit by a car, over the last weeks 1523 people got hit by a car and 1034 died, China is now reaching 25,000 deaths from car accidents on highways across the country… What is the problem that you cognitively identify when you hear and tell that story? Cars & highways. Because this is the framing of the conversation. Should we forbid cars and highways then?
This sounds absurd I know, but not more absurd than what we hear every day, think about it. “He died from Coronavirus”. The virus doesn’t kill, who said that? Think about it…Flip it upside down “7 billion 783 Million 700 thousand people did not die from Coronavirus over the last few months. Is the problem the fact that there are viruses on Planet Earth? Or is the problem that some people are vulnerable to viruses? (And all the whys they are vulnerable) Would this virus be a problem at all in a society where everyone is healthy physically, mentally, their soul is healthy, everyone has access to prevention measures, to decent healthcare. Should we put all our hopes on a vaccine? Until the next virus? Or should we put our focus on our vulnerabilities as individuals and as a society?
All we actually need to do is pick the right words. The Cosmos has a good sense of humor, asking us to cover our mouth with an accessory that also pulls our ears forward, like if we had to better listen to ourselves.
Today I am featuring the work of German artist 1010 who made an escape route in the ground besides the highway in Paris in 2015, a sort of vortex painted as a trompe l’oeil, showing us there is a much more colorful way out of this madness, that’s how I read it at least.
Links in the notes. Let me know your thoughts. Let’s reframe all stories around you, all the time. It’s our responsibility isn’t it?
Cheers
There is a very toxic narrative out there, a viral one to be exact. Words that turned into day-to-day language on the news, in all conversations, in our homes even.
We might want to be aware of the monster we are actually creating by pronouncing those words.
Let’s hear them, one last time…
This episode features a piece from Artist 1010 @1010zzz (Instagram)
Cosmic Dynamics is also available on Spotify & on podcast apps.
Thank you for tuning in.
Camille
