Another Look At Rua de Semper
Rather than focusing on form today, I’m just going to write a bit of simple text. This is just an observation that I found particularly interesting.
I’m staying in Buenos Aires for a few months to get a better idea of creativity. The relevance of the information is just to provide a little context. You get a more calm experience when you’re able to spend a couple of months around the lively people and city. There’s one notion of calm that I really want to express to you.
Pri, who is my partner in creativity, took a trip to the Botanical Gardens for a walk. Both of us decided to bring along one object to express ourselves. I brought along a notebook and Pri brought a drawing folder. While stopping in the park, I wanted to use the chance to get a little writing done. In Recife, I always feel like doing this, but work always takes up all the time I have.
After taking some time in the park to walk around while taking in the beautiful scenery and enjoying ourselves, we came across a large bench and decided to take a rest. Pri and I, who aren’t tiny people, were able to fill the bench comfortably. After only a short time, Pri was already deep in her drawings. As I laid on the bench, I couldn’t think of anything to write, despite being in the perfect position to give off the vibe of someone in a park busy writing away. That doesn’t seem to be my natural way, as my writings usually happen unceremoniously just before bedtime.
All I could do was lay there, meanwhile Pri was drawing with a full state of immersion. I was stuck in a state of confusion and all I could do was go to my saved notebook. I’ve given him thousands of words and many hours of my time. You often feel empty and have many thoughts when you live far way. Your mind and time are lacking in normal fillers when you have emptiness. I couldn’t just let the emptiness take over, and I did my best to fill my empty bag.
I worked as hard as I could to write something in my notebook, but with only a limited amount of success. Just a few lines here and there made it in at the time. When I was near the point of quitting, I took a look aside and noticed something interesting. There was a middle aged coupled sitting on one of the large benches by themselves. Pri and I had been sitting in the park to look at its beauty, but this particular bench was not facing it. Instead, this bench faced a railing near an avenue with a lot of activity.
With only their eyes situated on the street, the couple slightly hugged and simply sit on the bench without making a sound. I thought they would have said something after a while, but they didn’t. All they did was just sit beside each other while looking at the street, and they didn’t seem to mind it. My notebook was desperately begging me to write something in it, but I neglected it in favor of the couple.
The whole scene of the couple looked strange, but it filled me with curiosity and I liked it. It was like seeing people sitting in front of the warm glow of a television in a room. Their entire focus and the way they were just sitting without a sound, while focusing on nothing but the street was fascinating. For the longest time I had on headphones. I couldn’t stand hearing the bus over the natural garden sounds. The couple were on the bench for what seemed like a span of hours, just looking at “Everyday Life”, their favorite movie on the big screen.
Both members of the old couple were rich with white hair, and had a clear grasp of what happens everyday. Why exactly did they take some time to observe what happens normally each day? As members of society, we usually stay trapped in our regular loud and fast lives, only stopping to take a look at nature, television shows, or anything that will whisk us into another world. Stopping to simply look at what happens normally on a regular day and admire it for hours isn’t exactly common.
I figured that the street itself may not have been of any importance to them, just as the work done from swimming pool resurfacing might not be a main focus for a pool owner months after it has already been done. The main thing of importance to them was sitting beside each other on that bench. I began to think again that this wasn’t common at all. This couple would have been able to side beside each other at any time over the years, but this time they were doing it like it was the first time being in a silent area.
The man suddenly mentions something to his female companion, and she responds without the street leaving her field of vision, as if she was locked on an important movie moment. They both laugh and talk a little bit more, and then look back at the street again. This made me laugh as well. The whole admiration and appreciation of the common setting and people in it made me think of some kind of three way relationship between the street, the couple, and their bench. Every member of the relationship was in complete harmony, and I was in full admiration of how well they worked together in the cycle of every day life. Life exists, they love every minute of it, while keeping it all to themselves without anyone else knowing.
Clarice.