North, East and the Fallout
'War never changes'. A quote famously used in the 'Fallout' series of games, recycled into a recent streaming show. 'Fallout' is post-apocalyptic, alternative reality, rough and visceral, completely made up. Are we witnessing an apocalypse now?
THINK. History tends to move in loops. Cycles repeat in varying horizons. The setting, tooling and ideologies might change, while the underlying thirst for power and dominance remains the same. 'Us vs. them' becomes a universal excuse for violence. How deeply embedded is it all in human nature?
I first experienced the world of 'Fallout' nearly 30 years ago, right after the first game was released. It pulled me deep into a world after a full-scale nuclear war, where the remnants of humanity were hiding in underground vaults, while the surface was abundant in threats, radiation and hostility. The experience of America frozen in alternative 1950's was as chilling as it gets; I felt I am stepping of burial grounds of a once grand civilisation.
It is striking how thin the line is between relative peace and ignition of violence. The over-the-week news from the Middle East brought increased worry over the long-term stability of the region but also exposed different layers of agendas that international players might be putting in play. But this is 'big' politics. Meanwhile, missile debris hitting a hotel that I once stayed in, friends and their families sleeping on the floor of ground floors of their homes, travel disruptions, sirens and fires - it is all right there, so very close.
War leaves bereaved families on all sides of the conflict. One of the most powerful accounts of peace and reconciliation that I recently read is captured in 'Apeirogon' by Colum McCann. The only way, it seems, is to see a human being in 'the other'.
Are we wired for conflict? My son's school assignment in CSPE class (Civic, Social and Political Education) is to... run a country. In teams, students are asked to invent their societies, beliefs, government structures, make decisions and interact with others. The simulated outcome of all 'moves' is powered by algorithms. Inevitably (?) after a few rounds in the simulation, countries went to war.
Huh.
FEEL. Facing global conflicts and loss of life, one can feel quite powerless, unimpactful. I sometimes catch myself believing this must be for the others to solve; what can I really do?
It all starts with openness to listen without prejudice. I am digging deep to convince myself this is still in everyone's reach. Despite echo chambers.
DO. School break, albeit in the middle of arguably the wettest, most daunting winter in years, gave us a nudge to explore the Emerald Isle. Since winter is normally coming from the North... this is where we went. Below some highlights:
The legacy of 'Game of Thrones' series lives on in every prop, every piece of creative artwork, every set. A fan or not, house Stark, Lannister or Targaryen, it heats one's imagination up. You nearly want to live this life... and then you recall fire-breathing dragons, sharpness of sword and lack of access to dental hygiene. Still experienced better from a sofa!
Facing wonders of nature makes one feel small, and young. Oh, and wet if you stand to far out on Giant's Causeway while a wave is breaking!
I am possibly in the top 1% travelers who visit a zoo everywhere we go! Belfast Zoo is such a peaceful place - and we still had a chance to see two barbarian lions, a species now extinct in the wild, before they departed on their last journey.
We went to Derry/Londonderry to honour a hilarious show that we absolutely adore, and watched a good few times. And then we discovered breadth of 800+ years of history, including the most recent, still lingering on a handful of murals.
You don't need to be spending a fortune on private tutors. All it takes is an experience of hardships of shipyard work, so well-orchestrated in Titanic experience. Oh, let's play 'Humiliation' too: I never saw the movie!
Few things are better than sitting down after a long day of sightseeing and watching a film together as a family. Even if it's 'Grease' or 'Step Up' for the tenth time!
On a separate note - there is a new Geek in town! My son, an utterly creative spirit, is now combining his visual imagination with the affection for Marvel movies. It all started with a few random photos snapped on his phone. Then, as he is a young man of no small means, plenty of action figures were caught on still photos in the most peculiar settings, each telling its unique story. Visit his Instagram profile PicsForGeeks to see what I mean!
