Un any

Era 14 de juny de 2008. Els meus peus tocaven terra bostoniana per primer cop. Expectació i il.lusió s'entrecreuava en la meva ment. Per fi feia realitat un dels meus somnis: gaudir d'un projecte internacional. En aquest cas, es tractava d'un projecte personal. Sense guió. Amb una lleugera idea del què hauria de fer i moltes idees innovadores que esdevenien possibles...

Des d'aleshores, exactament un any ençà, he viscut molt més del què d'un inici podia arribar a imaginar. Viatjar per tots Estats Units descobrint les meravelles que la gran Amèrica amaga. Fer-me el meu lloc en la vida de Boston, la meva taula a l'Starbucks on poder estudiar, el meu bagel de bon matí, els DVDs de la biblioteca del barri, els meus recorreguts per anar a córrer, el meu Zuzus on poder viure moments inoblidables... però sobretot conèixer la magnífica gent amb qui he tingut el plaer de compartir aquest any. Ja diuen que un és la suma de totes les persones que han caminat plegats en la vida. I és totalment cert! L'evolució personal experimentada aquest darrer any ha estat possible gràcies a les persones que han estat properes a mi. He conegut gent que m'han fet replantejar-me els meus valors i creences, arribar a arrodonir els cantos de la caixeta quadrada que sóc... i també obrir-me a noves visions, nous plantejaments, arribar a entendre idees oposades on l'aspecte cultural és l'únic element diferenciador... i conviure amb un entorn de genis, de gent realment excepcional i empapar-me dels seus raonaments... i gent que m'ha ajudat en el camí del dia a dia, el més dur de tots, on el desànim afloreix sovint i saber que me'ls sento a prop meu, que estan disposats de donar-me un cop de mà en el moment necessari... i gent que amb les seves paraules m'ha fet ser capaç de viure estats de PURA FELICITAT, de poder entendre el perquè un 14 de juny de 2008 arribava a Boston...

Degut a tot això, ara, un any més tard, em sento tant fort i capaç d'assumir nous riscs que l'únic que em falta es començar a gaudir-los!!

Talking to Chairs

You never expect what a friend can request from you. Last Friday, my friend Joe requested that I go with him to choose a set of chairs for his living room. “Don't you realize that I am the worst person you could ever choose?” I told to him. “I want your honest opinion from you,” he replied. But I perfectly knew that he was lying. He only needed a friend to support his choice, no matter what it was.

Knowing that, we ventured to the furniture store. We went to a little vintage store in Cambridge called “De Sousa's Chairs”, the specialized store that has survived uncountable economic crises and has passed from parents to children. In its shop window, there were four plain chairs, elegant but simple. I wondered whether Joe was looking for this style, since it didn't match him.

Inside the store, a mish-mash of different styles of chairs greeted the eye, leaving only a small corridor to walk. Going inside, we saw the owner. A kind old man -I guessed in his 70s- full of chair expertise staring at us with a tender smile. Then, while Joe started describing his desired type of chair, I wandered around the enigmatic store without listening to the conversation. I knew that I would agree to the chosen chair, despite my real preference.

Suddenly, I heard a subtle noise, like a whisper, coming from the end of the store. I saw a little basic brown wooden chair, the classic one that we all have in mind. “Don't be afraid of me”, the chair whispered, “I am a lonely baby chair.” After my initial surprise, I asked -let's say- him how a chair could talk. He explained that even though all chairs have the ability to talk, they were so disappointed in humans' bad response when the chairs had once talked that they preferred to be quiet. On the contrary, he wanted to speak to someone because he didn't understand why nobody wanted to buy him. “My parents told me that some years ago, our model was the most sold in the United States and I should continue my family's legacy. But I do not know how!” the chair exclaimed and then he started to describe people's preferences.

“So far, I've seen that people like 3 different types of chairs: the fanciest-but-do-not-know-how-to-sit, the golden-but-do-not-touch-me, and the-IKEA-but-everyone-has-one.

The first model is the favorite for young rich people. These wealthy couples who both work in financial sector, live together and want to decorate their new apartment. They are looking for 'something different'. In other words, they want to waste their latest paycheck on the most expensive and trendiest chair, despite knowing neither whether it will match the other furniture nor how to sit in it because it is too 'trendy'. However, they are happy with their fancy chair.

The second model is the perfect match for the middle aged couple. With their children settled down, they want to start spending money only for themselves again. So, it's the time to renew the furniture. They are looking for 'something different'. What they have in mind is this ornamental rococo chair, definitely handmade to be so unique that no one is permitted to be seated on it. When they spend money, they want others to be conscious of the cost. Thus, they are happy with their luxurious chair.

The last model is suitable for young in love couples who want to share an apartment the first month of having met. They want to update the house decoration according to their style. They are looking for 'something different'. Or, to clarify, they want the nicest and cheapest chair. No matter if it won't last long; neither will their love. They are happy with their one-use chair.”

“Therefore, where are these people who really appreciate the classic but elegant style?” asked the baby chair. Then I suggested, “What you have to do is go abroad. Be international. The national market is not enough for you. Take your luggage and expand your style. I bet you will have success.” And when I was advising my little friend, I saw Joe carrying some black and white minimalist chair.

“Look what I got! It's the ultimate model on the market!” he shouted. I guess he's one of the first group.

Analysis of a picture

Young Lebanese drive through devastaded neighborhood of South Beirut,
15 August. Spencer Platt, USA, Getty Images. World Press Photo 2006 Winner.

Contrast. This picture shows contrast on every tiny part of itself. At first, we notice that the picture is full of details. In the foreground, we are attracted by a bright red object with several people totally distinguishable. The background, however, is all covered with a dull brown layer with too many details to be caught at this quick glance. Another look helps us identify clearly the strong difference between the foreground and the background of the picture. Time to start analyzing each layer separately. The front layer reveals that the shiny red object is, in fact, a luxurious red convertible car. Not one of these huge cars, but a fancy little urban car. If we look closer at the gauges on the dashboard and without being a car expert, we can probably guess that this is a red Mini Cabrio. So far, so good. Still at the front, and even though a Mini is not a full-size car, there are five people riding in it: a man who is the driver, and four beautiful tanned women. All of these five people are wearing summer clothes and also, except a woman who is using her cellphone, wear fashionable big mirrored sunglasses. The blonde woman with a white shirt in the passenger's seat stands out easily from the others who either are dark haired or wear dark sleeveless shirts. We could surely picture them driving along Malibu Beach in Los Angeles, California.

Focusing our eyes on the back layer, we instantly know that it is not Malibu Beach. We can see the ruins of what probably was a large building, and the houses next to them are also seriously damaged. Six men are between the rubble and the car. None of them are looking at the impressive car. They are either talking on cell phones or staring at the front buildings while walking or sitting.

An obvious question arises at this point: how can both layers fit in the same picture? What could draw more attention to those men than a luxurious red car in what it seems a poor neighborhood?

The answer starts to reveal itself when we read the picture's caption: “Young Lebanese drive through devastated neighborhood of South Beirut”. In order to fully understand the picture, we should know that it was taken in Beirut, Lebanon on August 15th , 2006, the second day of a cease-fire after a 34-day military conflict between Israel and Hezbullah, the Islamic political and paramilitary organization based in Lebanon. With this shocking knowledge, we can figure out that the people from the car are driving along the isolated streets of Beirut and staring at the chaos after the Israeli bombing. They do not look as if they have lost their homes. But they look as if they are visiting the destroyed city. They are war-tourists. Isn't it ironic? While most of Beirut's citizens lost everything in this cruel war and do not know where to begin in their nightmarish life, here, in contrast, we see a group of, we might assume, rich people observing the damage from their stable and secure life. From a luxurious car, they are taking pictures and one is even holding a handkerchief over her nose to prevent from smelling the dead. They are not part of this. They are just visitors.

What's even most surprising is the sticker on the dashboard of the car. A local newspaper that interviewed these people, says that it was a Samidoun sticker, which it is a volunteer organization that was formed during the war to help victims. That is another example to illustrate the shocking contrast of each element on this picture. A NGO sticker on a luxurious car. People that have lost their homes or their siblings among those wealthy who want to take pictures of the bombed city. Needed people among unhelpful ones. Everyone minds his own business.

Unfortunately, people forgot too soon. This picture was taken after a war in 2006 between Israel and Lebanon. Nowadays, Israel is fighting on an endless war against Palestinian people at Gaza Strip. They are on their 17th day of continuous war and neither United Nations, Europe, nor United States are able to convince Ehud Olmert, Prime Minister of Israel, to stop the massacre. The elections are too close to start losing voters.