If you noticed I did not post an outright “Object Writing” post on here on Wednesday, that is because I did a five day series on grief. I was given the grief prompt by a dancer our of University in Canada who asked if I would do an object writing page for her final dance project using the five stages of grief. Naturally I agreed & was delighted, this is that assignment! In my initial writing I did my best to make the stages flow naturally into one another, over the last week I had to figure out ways to segment them out into five one minute posts, they are all attached below. So, what I’m going to do is first post the written form then if you feel so inclined, or if you’d rather, you can go through the individual posts & watch/listen to what I did with them. I can’t wait to share the final dance product as well once it’s presented! Enjoy!

OBJECT WRITING: GRIEF

“This can’t be happening, this can’t be happening, this can’t be happening.” The shock of the news nearly knocks me off my feet as the message the tsunami of information carried echoes endlessly around my brain. I feel faint, detached from the human vessel that tethers my spirit to this earth, adrift in the noise & chaos. My myriad of emotions cause me to question what is real or even possible. Is this? Is it all just a dream, some sick illusion my subconscious has cooked up for some unknown reason or have the unfathomable nightmares of my deepest, darkest dread become reality? At the end of my Rolodex of “no’s” hangs the fixture to which I attach blame. “IF” I am to believe this malicious marquee of misinformation then someone is at fault. Someone or something is the culprit for this misfortune; effect is nothing without cause. My adrenals pump molten rage into my bloodstream, igniting my senses into fiery passion. I am fuming, eyes frantically searching for elucidation & something to pin the focus of my frustration. Then it hits me. It smacks me in the face with the fury of the scorn I’ve irradiated into my atmosphere. What if it’s me? What if it’s my fault? My mind begins to work overtime, clockwork machines come alive & the pressure & steam give way to desperation. I return a call, for the first time since being encumbered by the burden of knowing I reach out to another human being whom I share commonality with. I am insistent, disheartened, “if only I’d done this,” I cry, “if only I’d done that” but my cries are fruitless. What’s done is done. Life has no redo button, it offers no relapse into the undoing of retribution. Maybe an exchange then, something for that which I’ve lost. Maybe the almighty, the cosmos, the powers that be will shine one glint of mercy upon me & offer me a fair trade. Time, money, possessions, health, all are on the line, all viable options for the return. But the universe sits silent, unbothered by the heart-wrenched pleading of a drop in the river, in the grand stream of time. All is silent. The stillness creeps into my being & settles uncomfortably into my bones. The meaning & spirit drains from me like sap oozing softly from a tree into the ground below me. Gravity’s weight is multiplied ten fold & soon the creature comforts that bring me respite begin to do little the fill the void. I am hollow, an empty shell of icy numb hurt as the colors melt inchmeal around me into sickly, sullen shades of grays. It’s pointless, all of it. Pointless. My energy depleted, my hopes scattered, my berth begins to feel more & more like a tomb; a black void of nothingness to which I shall willingly succumb. Little by little I fall further into the pits of my forlorn until, at last, I reach the soft maw of the abyss. Cradled in self pity & affliction I lie there, transfixed by misery until a delicate ember drifts haphazardly into my core. It too rests with me in this eternity, offering a knowing melancholy smile before wrapping me in warmth. The freedom of empathy washed through me & enrobes me in loving light. It does not discount my loss or patronize but instead sits in amiable eloquence carrying me through my despair. It lifts my chin, places a quant reassurance on my forehead, & nudges me affectionately towards tomorrow. “It is time,” it whispers to me. Like a freshly birthed foal I stagger to find my footing; one & then the other. I look up to the mountain that stands proudly aloft before me & I begin the ascent; one foot at a time, one day & then the next. The sun breaks through the morbid gray & for the first time in what feels like an age I am at peace.

OBJECT WRITING: GRIEF PART ONE: DENIAL

OBJECT WRITING: GRIEF PART TWO: ANGER

OBJECT WRITING: GRIEF PART THREE: BARGAINING

OBJECT WRITING: GRIEF PART FOUR: DEPRESSION

OBJECT WRITING: GRIEF PART FIVE: ACCEPTANCE

So, global warming.

(Yes, we’ll be referring to it as “global warming” instead of “climate change” because the research shows the general public finds that terminology “more pressing,” which it should be.)

As I’m sure many of you have seen, global warming has been making all kinds of headlines this week mostly due to The UN Climate Summit & Greta Thunberg’s incredible speech. If you haven’t given the incredible sixteen year old’s speech a listen, it’s a powerfully moving four and a half minute watch as is her speech during the opening track of The 1975’s forthcoming album “Notes On A Conditional Form.” The escalating visibility of climate activism & mountainous pile of evidence in favor of the fact that we are destroying our planet got me thinking, & really it got me thinking about one tiny little question I want to ask those who don’t seem to believe the truly dire situation we are in. Before I pose my question I guess I should preface by clarifying that this blog post is more targeted towards those who are deniers than believes. My question follows:

What if it’s true? What if only one tiny iota of it is true? Out of all the data & concrete science, what if even one gram of it is truth? Is that not enough to take action?

I know majority of the denier demographic falls in the boomer category & I know, I know this is going to sound like just another millennial whining about the older generation messing things up for us, but we share the fault in this as well. It seems however that the reason Gen X, Millenials, & Gen Z are rapidly joining the fight against global warming is, to put it plainly, that we’ll actually be alive to see it. We’ll be the ones left to “survive” on the earth we killed., forced to live with the horrendous conditions we’ve created. Not only will we have to live with this, but so will our children & our children’s children. Those who are innocent to the cause will suffer the effects of the negligence of the previous generations. My prompt to those who are in the older generations, content to let the world burn, is what about your grandchildren? Hasn’t your goal as a parent, as a grandparent, always been to create a better way of life for those that come after you? If that’s the case I think I would mark this down as a major failure on your part & say in the worlds of Greta “How Dare You!”

If there’s one iota of truth to it all why are you fighting the change required? What do you lose by being just a little more green? What are you really giving up to save the planet? Think of all the things you’ve sacrificed over the years to make a better life, how if this any different? I guess the main difference boils down to selfishness. We don’t want to change because they’re not, we don’t want to change because it doesn’t benefit us or our families immediately, we don’t want to change because it may cost us a few dollars more a month. I would argue “an eye for an eye” leaves the world blind, or in this case, dead. You’re right, the change necessary wouldn't improve the quality of just those around you, it’d improve the quality of life for everyone living on this planet. The money you inevitably save on allergy medication or other medical bills, the money you save because food is becoming increasingly hard to grow or catch due to the death of pollinators or decimated populations, the amount you’ll save not having to deal in home maintenance due to the ever increasing ferocity of weather, heat, & cold, will be more than worth the investment you put in to choosing the greener path.

I guess I’m just frustrated, my generation is frustrated. We’re tired of screaming stop just for the wheel to keep turning without regard for what it’s trampling in the process. We have to make a change, all of us. We have to pressure corporations, that make up 72% of the carbon footprint to change. We have to be better, not only for ourselves but for those who come after. We cannot allow selfishness & laziness to win. None of these changes are things you have to make over night, but little by little we all can help save the world. Start by getting a recycling bin, move to purchasing reusable containers to take with you to the store, cut out single use plastics, buy from sustainably farmed sources, don’t run your heat or air conditioner at full blast all the time. Take baby steps adding more and more as you go along, you’ll be amazed when you look back & see how far you’ve come just how easy the journey actually was.

Blog/Object Writing: Grief

Blog: Global Warming & The One Iota of Truth