Getting to know ...

Usually, before making a window lamp, I try to get a sense of its 'personality' by being aware of what it feels like and noting any particular words, colours, numbers, etc. that come to mind. Not that I dwell on these things, but they are like little clues along the way, subconsciously informing what the window lamp is meant to be. Each window has its own vibration, probably created by:

1. Its former location (did it come from a town or country house; living room, bedroom or kitchen?)

2. The people who interacted with it in the house it once occupied (were they peaceful, were they a family, was it a single person, old or young, etc?)

3. The reasons why it was detached from its original position. (Was the house demolished? If so, why? Was the window removed to make way for more modern ones?)

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Depending on where (or how) I find (or receive) the window, I will not always know the answers to those kinds of questions. On different levels (and in ways that can't necessarily be put into words),the process of making a window lamp is intuitively healing and transformational for me ... and, I feel, for the one(s) who eventually receive(s) it.

Close up detail of designs on one of two similar panes to the bottom of the window

When I first get a window I wash it - not only to remove physical dirt, but also to cleanse it in a deeper, intangible sense. Since bringing it home, this current window has been outside. It has an outdoorsy spirit. In addition to the original washing I gave it, the rain has also been playing its part, giving it heavy showers (of blessings).

Close up shot of screw on window hinge

What I have picked up so far from this window:

1. Natural. If I asked it where it came from, it would sooner respond "from a tree" - as opposed to "from a house in Santa Cruz/Toco/Tunapuna/wherever".

2. The colour green keeps coming to mind.

3. Cool, peaceful

4. Not just to be looked at - to be experienced

5. Music, inspiration

6. Multifaceted

7. Gentle surprises

8. Even though it has four panes, it feels more like the number 3

9. It has a special name which will be revealed in the course of time that I am working on it

10. It feels quiet and willing, but patient. Maybe that's what the person who gazed through it most was like. Or maybe it goes further back ... the tree that it came from must have had those qualities.

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By the way, for those who have been following the 'Steps' project, I have not forgotten or abandonned it. Another installment will be forthcoming (shortly).

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Elspeth

The Gift

Where are you from?

How many people have stared through you,

leaving their thoughts and dreams invisibly etched?

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The other day I was walking to the market and I saw a young man in a yard cleaning one of these old windows that I used to collect to make window lamps. (You'll find a few examples of completed window lamps on page 2 of this Gallery Collection). I have been looking for one of these windows for a while now, since my friend Gabrielle comissioned one for her and her boyfriend. I went to the young man and asked him where he'd got the window. He said a man had given him three windows for $10 each and that he was coming back tomorrow to bring more. It looked as though he was fixing up their little home, which is a wooden shack-like structure set back from the Eastern Main Road. The scrubbed windows looked clean and new in comparison to the stained plywood of the shack walls. Anyway, to cut a long story short, he told me he would get a window for me.
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When I went back yesterday afternoon, he emerged from the little shack next door to the one (on the same compound) where he lives with his child and the child's mother. She (Melissa)refers to him as her "Baby fadda", so I guess she is "Baby mudda." And the little baby might be "Baby Bhudda"?) When Baby Fadda saw me, his face lit up and he said "Lemme go get it." He came back with the window and, when I reached into my pocket to pay him for it, he looked almost offended, shook his head and made a motion with his hands as though giving me a gift.
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I wonder what this window lamp will turn out to be.

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Elspeth

Progress (the video)

Click here to see PROGRESS video

Length: 54 seconds

File: wmv

File size: 2.46MB

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If you have a high speed connection it will take about 3 minutes to download (if so long). Slower connections will take a bit longer, but just be patient and you'll see it.

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Just in case:

smaller 1.2 MB version of video here

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Elspeth

Two comments on Progress ... and a final thought

Moss (not Kate).

Down to the smallest part of our environment is 'home' for living organisms.

If one can't respect moss ... then what is 1,500 acres of virgin forest?

The first comment in yesterday's post brought up an important point about the hunter gatherer tribal peoples living in the Andaman islands (re the tsunami): Relying on their knowledge of the movement of wind, sea, and birds, they had the good sense to heed the warning signs and head for the safety of high ground. This speaks volumes. It's not a pity - it's a tragedy that those who are recklessly destroying nature in the name of progress don't realise that they are also destroying the umbilical cord that connects us to Mother Nature ... our own true natures. How easy is it to tune in and connect to our sixth sense/inner self/higher self/God amidst the modern, metallic, grating noises of pile drivers, excavators, trucks, traffic, loud music, loud voices, screaming newspaper headlines, graphic violence, televisions, radios, blimps? Stop the noise! We can't hear ourselves enough to know who we truly are. When I go into the country or mountainous areas to get away from what I've described above, I can feel the difference in the air. It becomes lighter and less cloying the further away I get from 'civilisation'. A skin peels away ... Lately, though, I've noticed that the sound of birds seems to be less, I see fewer butterflies, the trees look thin ...
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The second commentor provided the lyrics for the calypso "Progress" by King Austin - definitely worth reading to see the truth that the old man has penned: "... the price of progress is high, real high. I see consciousness abate, As today we live recklessly, Money makes egos inflate And thereby creates a turbulent state." As I read those lyrics I thought of something my mechanic said to me the other day. The morning we spoke on the phone, I had arranged with a forester to go to Toco to get some video footage of Forestry Division felling a tree (I didn't go in the end due to rain and cancallation of the felling). My mechanic asked me why I wanted the footage and I told him I was working on a short video to make a particular environmental statement. He said: "Girl, I like what you're doing ... but people will just look at that and see entertainment. How many will actually get the message and do something?" I don't think he is being pessimistic or that he is trying to deter me. What he has said has truth to it. When I read Austin's lyrics I thought about what he had told me . I thought "Most people see this calypso as entertainment. How many of us really listen to such lyrics and question our actions or experience some shift in consciousness and behaviour?"
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I don't think all is lost. Messages of awareness and positive energy are like drops of water on rock. The noise and chaos of modern civilisation is a tusnami ... which was once also just a drop.
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Elspeth

Progress?

This tree stands tall in the Botanical Gardens,
seemingly safe from the ravages of 'progress'
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I don't know about anyone else, but I hate seeing all the construction taking place on this island. The irony of rampant 'construction' being so destructive to the environment ... A friend told me stories she had heard about the fate of the wild animals during the clearing of 1,500 acres of forest in south (for the controversial aluminium smelter). Apparently the clearing of the land had started from outside in, thereby literally impounding the animals in the centre, making it difficult for them to escape. Humans subsequently captured and slaughtered them to eat (wild meat). Apparently trucks were driving off dripping the blood from the carcasses of these poor beings.

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Words cannot convey the horror I felt upon hearing this. Think of the tsunami ... and the fact that in the face of such a massive disaster, animals' sixth sense had warned them of the coming wave - enabling them to escape to higher ground. This is why no animal carcasses were found amidst the debris of human bodies and rubble. However, in the case of a massive disaster like men coming with tractors and bulldozers to demolish an entire forest, populated with age-old trees/homes for countless living organisms ... does an animal's sixth sense work for that? I don't think so. No animal's sixth sense can alert it to the fact that there are money-hungry politicians and businessmen sitting around tables rubbing their hands and discussing the land they're going to clear so that they can erect a controversial smelter that no-one (but they) wants.

A crane and a flag, shot yesterday from Phase II panyard, next door to where they are building #1 Woodbrook Place. I took this shot because I feel the crane is flying high like the new symbol of T & T.

The day I heard that story about the wild animals, I called Detta Buch recipient of the first Happy Hippy Annual Hero's Award. Where do these animals go when their habitats are pillaged by man? This is why someone like Detta is important and why I sincerely hope that her work will be recognized and financially supported on a consistent basis. As the only person in TT who rehabilitates injured and orphaned wild animals, she has a monumental job on her hands. Her organisation: WORC is run virtually singlehandedly.
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Her latest patient is Lady, a pelican with one wing (the other is amputated). The people who brought her in to Detta had found her with another pelican, which was dead. The dead pelican was hanging by a rope around its neck from a tree. According to Detta: "And it was not suicide ..." It was humans, who apparently kill pelicans to eat. Is this necessary? The one-winged Lady can never be returned to the wild, so she will remain with Detta as an educational bird (for children in schools, etc.) As she is unable to catch her own fish, Detta has to go daily in search of sardines (Joshua) or other small fish for her to eat. This requires money ... as does purchasing a deep freeze in which enough fish can be stored (so that those daily fish searches are not necessary). If anyone is interested in helping to raise funds for this worthy cause, do not hesitate. You may also be willing to donate cash ... or give of your time as a volunteer (details and Detta's contact information can be found on the WORC site). Thank you.
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I am currently organising a photography exhibition with a friend of mine in order to raise funds for WORC. We have so far gathered about 10 photographers (both amateur and pro) - each of whom will submit maximum 2 photos, preferably around wildlife or nature themes. All money from sales will go to WORC. I'll keep you posted as to when and where this will take place.
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Elspeth

One

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Elspeth

Step #4b: What the Grownups said ...

(Taking place in the village of Kernahan)
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After speaking with Kajal, I asked Hansraj (alias Bobby), Bridgemohan (alias Mex), Jai and his wife (Jamira) Howie's rephrased question: What could you do to get this country to move as one? I will reserve Kajal's question (Will you be my friend?) for the next person I converse with for this project (whoever that may be).

(l to r): Bobby, Jai and Mex
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Below: Extracts from the conversation, transcribed from dictaphone.

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You have to have unity … love. Once you have unity, love, cooperation, you could move a mountain.

- Hansraj -

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Well, I’m thinking the personal way, right? All de villagers have to come out … we get together and that’s how we movin’. ‘Cause I alone can’t do it, he alone can’t do it. Right? All of us have to get together and get something moving.

- Jai -

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You put everybody together and you talk. Dat is one. But once dis one pullin’ dat way and dat one pullin’ dat odder way … dat cyah be one!

- Jamira -

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Most of de people cooperate and live wit a love in this village. And we want to have this village in love and live with love. We don’t want de outsiders to come here - tief we ting, interfere wit we family and do de wrong ting den. We, de villagers have to stannup and see dat we village be nice.

- Bridgemohan -

During our conversation a buffalypso pulled a cartload of villagers past the house to the beach.

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Bridgemohan: I really glad you did come and see how de villagers living. You see your car park dere? You could leave it dere one month and nobody touching it.

Jai (jumping in): Now I have a question for you! You tell me … what’s de reason why you asking dese questions? What company you askin’ for?

E: No no no …

Jamira: She jes' seein’ how de village goin’!!

Jai: Nah nah – who sen’ you here to ask dat question?

E: I sent myself here to ask that question.

Jai: No! What company you from?

E: I’m an artist. I’m not with a company. I’m an individual. I’m just a person who is interested in finding out … Because somebody … let me tell you how it all began (I tell him about the ‘what would you do if you were Prime Minister' question, the fact that I am not PM and that I could only deal with issues as myself in the way that I can – and the same for everyone else. Meanwhile Jai is listening attentively, nodding and going “Yeah yeah aha aha") … I use my creativity to help make people aware of things. I don’t just want to paint a picture. I try to help to find out things and understand …

Jamira: I knows dat!

E: I may not be able to put up lights and all this kinda thing but …

Jai: Yeah!

E: But I could help people to hear something that you said because they wouldn’t know you otherwise.

B: Right!

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If you would like a full copy of the transcript, just request it and I will send it.

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Elspeth

Step #4a: Kajal

I decided that I would find a child to answer Howie's rephrased question: What would you do to get this country to move as one? I felt that a young child would look at the 'issue' in a very different way and would simplify the answer by not bringing politics into it. Two days after my first trip to Kernahan, I took a friend (Carol) along for company and went back to see if I could find a little girl in that village to answer the question. At one point, when we stopped to take photos of some waterlilies growing in a canal at the roadside, eager voices floated over to us from a little wooden house across the street: "Snap we! Snap we!"

It is here, on a verandah occupied by family members of different ages, that I found Kajal, the little girl who agreed to be interviewed. She and I went to the back of the house to talk while C stayed chatting with the adults on the verandah. The answers Kajal gave, whilst simple, are thought provoking in their own way. As C and I drove home later that day, I relayed what Kajal had said and, for most of the two hour drive back, we discussed her simple solution (and the new question she had posed) in the context of our own lives.
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(Conversation with Kajal, transcribed from dictaphone)
Elspeth: What's your name?
Kajal: Kajal.
E: How old are you?
K: Seven years old
E: Are those your toys over there?
K: Yes.

E: What games do you play with those toys?
K: Tea set.
E: Tea set?
K: Yes.
E: Let’s go and see it.
(We walk across to the toys)
E: What are the different things?
K: I does play cooking.
E: What kinds of things you cook?
K: All kinda ting.
E: Okay, I'm going to ask you a question ... and if you don't understand the question you could ask me what it means, okay? What would you do to get this country to move as one? You understand that question?
(Kajal nods)
E: What does it mean?

Read the full interview with Kajal here

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Kajal's father (nicknamed Bobby) and other family members on the verandah. They were open and friendly, welcoming us in to their home. Bobby was quick to tell us that they need more water in their village ... and told us they need to get the information out to the papers.

(l to r): Kajal's father (Bobby), Uncle (Mex) and Kajal. Mex works with the Forestry Division and invited us to come back and bring friends, as we would be fascinated by all there is to see in the forest - monkeys, birds, how to cast net to catch cascadou, etc. The rest of the family agreed and advised us to walk with cameras to 'snap'.

Kernahan's landscape from a height.

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At the end of my chat with Kajal, she wrote her own positive message on a Post It:

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Some thoughts after Step #4:

1. The people I have been drawn to so far for this project generally do not have internet access. In some cases they cannot even read. In this respect, they are unfortunately excluded from this 'blog' stage of the project. The messages (generally) need to be transmitted in other ways as well.

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2. After Step 4b (tomorrow) it may be necessary to step back, assimilate each 'Step' taken so far and look at the messages and lessons inherent in each before moving on. This will determine how and where to proceed.

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3. I'm interested in seeing where Kajal's solution/question will take the project. On one hand, it could take us far away from the original question ... but, as my friend Carol said, it could take us closer to the answer.

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To be continued tomorrow. Tune in for what the grown ups had to say (Step #4b).

N.B. Since Step #4 was Kajal's (and the next question comes from her), I will not be focusing on the conversation with the grownups - merely presenting a chunk of what was said. The full transcript is available, though, for anyone who wants to read it.
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Elspeth

Kernahan

View of rainbow from Kernahan the first evening I went.

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What would you do to get this country to move as one?

I asked Howie's question yesterday (Sunday) to the one who answered it, thereby accomplishing Step #4. I encountered her when I returned to Kernahan, the village where she lives.

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On Friday gone, I had been driving through Manzanilla with a friend and decided to turn down a road I had never been on. It led us to Kernahan, which we found to be quaint and beautiful.

Some may look at the little wooden houses with their rickety wooden planks leading over canals to the road and think 'poverty' ... but there was a quality of 'richness' in simple things around - particularly the children playing outdoors - some with toys under the houses, some gathered with bikes on the sides of the streets chatting, some running with small puppies in dirt yards. It seemed as though we had stepped back in time to an era when children still knew what it was to play safely outdoors, finding joy in simple things and in each other's company.

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It was getting late, but I said to myself "I want to come back here" (which I did on Sunday). When I went back, an older man I was talking with (after my chat with 'Step #4') mentioned to me: "We need more street lights on dis road." (One would think he was requesting this for safety ... but it wasn't that at all). "We need more lights so de chirren could see to play when it get dark. So dey could play dey cricket an' ting nah. An' you know I go be playin' wit dem."

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Tomorrow: STEP #4

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Elspeth

Unlimited

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Inspired by Howie's rephrased version of the original question:
What would you do to get this country to move as one?

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Elspeth

Do you know?

Sign on door of the small Star Bright Cafe on Arima/Blanchisseuse Road.

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Those of you who know Undine Giuseppi's "Do You Know" column in the Newsday will know why this sign made me think of her.

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Elspeth

Step #3: The moral of the story is ...

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(Thank you, Christian Soul for your comment left yesterday. I have decided to copy my response here. Not everyone may read the comments or know of the recent discussions and perspectives that the 'Post Its' have stirred, but ... but on deeper levels I feel these are things for all of us to think about ... "from de Prime Minister go down" as Howie would say).

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Christian Soul, yes it could have been worse, but thankfully it wasn't. (Hopefully) we all learn and will continue to learn from 'mistakes' we make throughout life. Being human, we make all kinds of 'mistakes' daily. Some we don't even know about because we just don't understand how our simple actions or statements affect someone until/unless that person points it out. I apologised to the man and to his bosses and I admitted to myself and publicly that I had learnt something from the particular situation.

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I am also learning a lot from all of these comments and discussions around the 'Post Its' and the many thought provoking topics they have raised. Maybe we have all learnt something from this(about ourselves, about others, about perspectives?) ... and maybe not.

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It's easy to look at someone else and say "You shouldn't have done that because it was wrong" or "you almost caused this bad thing to happen because of what you did" ... and even easier to not look at oneself (log in the eye concept) and ask what simple, unwitting thing you might have done that could have affected (or is affecting) someone else around you. That simple bad drive almost costing a life or causing an accident? (Just an example).

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It is easy for people to speak out to me about putting 'positive' (subject to interpretation) Post Its in public places ... and not speak out to the person who throws garbage out of the car window, casually places a beer bottle in the drain when the dustbin is right there, breaks a major road or red light ... and blatantly continues to do careless and unthinking things that have become 'acceptable' simply because we are in TT and we take it all for granted that "da's de way it is". As long as we continue to think that way, "da's de way it go always be."

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What do we speak out against? What do we speak up for? Post Its?

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Once two or more people are gathered around any issue, different perspectives will always rear their heads - not for the purpose of creating disharmony, but for the purpose of giving us the opportunity to see where someone else is coming from, stop to think and understand and step out of our own (often) limited self-vision and to learn and grow together in some way from the situation.

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One thing: I don't fully grasp what you mean by your statement: "sometimes I wonder how far you would go to express yourself onto others". Are you referring to me specifically?

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You ended by saying: "ya might need to rethink what you do when you venture out of your own country. that situation could have been worst" ... What you've said goes beyond the (I think by now) worn out example of me and the Post Its. You've said something true about our culture and the way people are. Someone may not think about what they do when they are here because they don't have to! Who will do or say anything about it? Tossing rubbish anywhere but the bin, driving crazy, pushing in lines, rudeness to others, etc ... but they are on p's and q's in "a big country", lining up civilly, waiting patiently, responding politely ... etc. Granted, the reason for some of this is the more stringent laws of the land, but ...

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Conclusion: I think the Post Its have merely brought up much deeper and more serious issues that we all need to look at and think about ... in ourselves first. This brings me back to the whole point behind the 'Steps' project.

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Elspeth

What happened with the London Cabbie

When we were in London working (on the British Council video project with schools), every day on our way to the second school, Rose and I would take the tube from Brixton to Seven Sisters, change to a train and get off at can't-recall-name-of-stop, where we would call a cab from a particular cab company. On our journey, we would both stick Post-It messages in random public spots (mine were flurouescent pink, hers were bright blue).
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On the second-to-last day when we were in the cab, as we reached the school, I stuck a Post-It on the back of the passenger seat. Something told me not to, because a cab felt more 'private' than 'public' ... but I left it anyway, thinking it was a harmless gesture. It said: "This is for you: You are in the right place at the right time. Look around you." (N.B. I used to pre-write these notes so it would be easier to pull one off and stick it quickly without having to spend time writing on the spot). In my context, that message meant - where you are is where you are meant to be, everything is as it should be, look around you and see that life has a lot to offer, etc. (In retrospect, maybe it was a bit abstract ...).
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The next day when Rose called the cab company, the woman on the phone asked if we had left a note in the cab yesterday. I don't think Rose had seen me stick that Post-It, but she had an idea that's what it was and asked the woman what the note said. The woman responded: "You are the right person at the right time ... etc." (which is not what it was, but anyway ...) Then she mentioned that the cab driver had been scared ...
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The same cab driver, a Somalian, came to pick us up - but in a different car. As we got in, I noticed the pink Post-It on the tray between the two front seats (he had specifically brought it with him). Two minutes into the drive he handed it to me and asked me if I had left it there yesterday. I told him yes and explained the project - that my friends and I are doing it throughout the city, to uplift people, transmit positive messages, etc. The cabbie began to tell me that it was not positive, that a passenger had entered the cab, got scared and said he was not travelling with him, went to report him to his bosses at the cab company who then got hold of the pink Post-It note and analysed it. In their analysis they said it was a negative and threatening note, especially as it was written on RED paper ... and they wanted to report him to the police. By this point Rose and I were looking at each other in disbelief.

The cabbie incident did not stop me from sticking up Post-It's, but I was more cautious about where I left them, based on people's potential level of paranoia. In airports, for example, the simplest thing could be interpreted as a terrorist threat ... like "HAVE A NICE DAY". I removed the Post-It on the airplane window above (KLM to Amsterdam) ... just in case.

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I felt so sorry for the cabbie - and that an innocent, well-intended situation had gone so awry. I told him I would call or write a note to his employers and he was very grateful. He said "Yes, you can write a note" and gave me some paper. I wrote a long letter saying who I was, outlining the project, apologising for the misunderstanding, saying it was unfortunate that something intended to be positive had been perceived as a negative, stressing that I was the one who had written the note and not Driver #35 and that he had known nothing about it, so don't punish him for it, etc. He seemed relieved by what I wrote and stuck the Post-It to the letter (I guess to show his bosses it was the same handwriting and that he didn't write the letter himself). As Rose pointed out, people in London are still tense after the bombings and the message most likely came across as a threat of danger.
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The moral of that story was: write more clear cut messages and note where they are placed in the event that their physical or cultural context gives them a different meaning. (But still ... you can never really know how someone will perceive something ...).
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Elspeth

Stick 'em up

When I was in London in December, something I did almost caused an innocent cab driver to get sent to the police. I'm telling you this since the issue of "different perspectives" has been coming up lately. The example with the cab driver is sad ... and, whilst I understand the circumstances, I cannot help but laugh in disbelief.
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I had started a spontaneous Post-It project when I was in Toronto in October. I would leave positive messages written on Post-It notes whenever I rode on the subway, trams, went through a turnstile, was in public toilets, etc. Each message would begin with the words: "This is for you:" - to make it seem more personal and specific to the person who found it. (N.B. Perception: By sticking Post-Its in public places am I littering or uplifting random strangers with positive notes?) I felt that these messages 'out of the blue' in public places would brighten someone's day, offer guidance just when they needed it, inspire them, etc. Once I was on a tram with my friend J and I stuck a Post-It on the tram seat in front of us so we could observe the person who found it. The note simply said: "This is for you: Tonight is a magical night. Don't miss it!" Eventually a couple came and sat in that pair of seats. The way the girl's face lit up when she saw the Post-It note was priceless. Her mouth flew open (and remained open for quite a while). She detached the note, showed it to her boyfriend (who looked equally happy about it), then read it again and put it carefully in her handbag as a keepsake. When they got off the tram they were still smiling.

A post it note left on the menu card at Garfunkel's in Leicester Square, London

There is pleasure in leaving these notes for random people to find. It's different doing it in TT, because I drive a car and rarely take public transport. So I leave Post-It notes in other places - like on the ABM machine after withdrawing cash, in public toilet stalls, on a random product in the supermarket, etc. It has to be done very quickly and surreptitiously so no-one sees.

This Post-It note left on a snowy trail in Switzerland says:

This is for you: may you be guided along the right path always.

This post is getting quite long ... and the London cab driver story deserves a page of its own, so I'll continue that story tomorrow ... but will leave you with two more Post-It photos.

This Post-It note stuck in a London phonebooth says "This is for you: The world is so big and yet so small. The things you do are small and yet so big. Do good things." When I looked at the photo afterwards, I realised how a perfectly innocent message could be interpreted very differently because of where it is placed. Note the 'Exotic Massage' and 'Exclusively for you Magical Moment' sex ads in the background. "So small and yet so big ..." might mean something else to an eager male customer.

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This man on the London underground was so deep in thought that he never noticed the fluorescent pink Post-It stuck to his right. Unlike the Toronto transport system, which was so clean that the Post-Its stood out, the London underground had more clutter to it. More strategic placement was required.

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Friends in Toronto and London have been continuing the project.

Why not try it yourself?

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Elspeth

It's a sign

Yesterday my mechanic (Lenny) was driving me in his car through Curepe when I noticed this sign. I asked him to stop so I could get a photo of it. When I returned to the car, he was curious as to why I would want to take a picture of a vandalised road sign. It actually hadn't even occurred to me that it had been vandalised, since at the moment I noticed it, all I saw was a message telling me "Go ahead, don't be afraid, you can do it, believe in what you are doing ...". To me, it was confirmation for #3 from the conclusions in yesterday's post.

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Lenny chuckled and said "I didn't see it that way." He told me he had seen it as someone defacing a sign (actually a few road signs throughout Curepe) and that the vandal was in fact suggesting that drivers break the law, break the major road, 'go trough hard' and ignore the fact that other cars may be coming.

Inspiration and irresponsibility in one sign.

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This led us to speak about perspective ... the fact that we can look at life around us in such different ways. That led us to talk about awareness ... and the fact that we all play a part in helping each other to see things in different ways. This led Lenny to tell me about an interesting nationwide awareness-raising project he has been thinking of initiating. That led me to realise yet again that there are people out there with great intentions for positive transformation ... and the only thing is for Step #1 to occur: Begin.

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Elspeth

Step #2: Howie

"In dis day and age, promising lights, road and water is banana republic issues. Not 20/20 issues."

- Howie -

(reflecting on the Government and their promises)

I first met Howie when I went to buy bananas in Tunapuna Market on Saturday. I was struck by the way he spoke to me and each one of his customers: "How you going? You having a good day?" I told him I was an artist and asked if I could come back to talk with him for a project I am exploring. He said yes.

I returned on Sunday with my camera, dictaphone and the question written on a piece of paper - curious to see how it would be interpreted out of context. When Howie read it, he exclaimed: "Eh!!" and chuckled, raising his eyebrows (as if to say 'heavy topic'). I explained to him that it's not about politics, not about the Prime Minister, but about each one of us ... (etc). He listened, nodding in agreement.

What I thought would be a ten to fifteen minute chat ended up being two hours long (bits of which were recorded):

Read the transcription of the conversation with Howie

here.

(Don't worry - the transcription itself isn't 2 hours long!)

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Clues I got from (and conclusions I made after) Step #2:

1. The question needs to be adjusted yet again. Because of its phrasing, people may be inclined to start discussing Government and politics (as being responsible for solving issues) and stray away from the focus on Self and what we can do as everyday individuals. In light of this, I asked Howie to rephrase the question. His suggestion: What would you do to get this country to move as one?

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2. Each step does not have to be a person. It may be a place or thing.

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3. Some steps will be small, some tentative, some large, some seemingly insignificant. The thing is to proceed anyway and don't doubt the process. It is leading somewhere valid.

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4. Some key words: awareness, association, community.

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5. A few other thoughts (which I won't list here) stimulated by Howie's conversation.

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If you want to be notified of each step, just send me

an e-mail with your name and mailing address and I will add you to the project mailing list. I will continue to update the blog daily (but not necessarily with specific steps, as these will come in their own time).

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Thanks.

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Elspeth

Since I am not Prime Minister of TT

... and neither are you (unless Patrick Manning is reading this), I have adjusted the original question (asked by a reader) so that it can be answered in a more realistic way.

What steps will I/you/we put in place to deal with issues affecting our island?

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(The new idea swirls in and around interviewer/interviewee: Elspeth Duncan)

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What is the first step?

The first step for me is my current willingness to go with the flow and proceed with a very simple idea that the original question stirred up in me. This idea is not yet fully "formed" and I won't limit it by saying what it 'must' or 'will' be at this stage. It will evolve naturally, finding form and greater meaning through the different 'steps' that will come into place over time.

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Once these 'steps' are put in place, will issues affecting our island be dealt with?

Even if certain steps are put in place, issues will not be dealt with unless there is individual and collective willingness (to contribute to a necessary process of positive transformation), commitment (to this process through the means each step can provide), support (for each step/each other) and belief (in ourselves, each other and a Higher Power).

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What are the issues affecting our island?

Every single one of us in TT is "an issue affecting our island".

On the most basic level, when we project negative thoughts or feelings or give in to frustration, fear, lack of respect, ignorance, laziness, carelessness, hopelessness, greed, envy, excess (and so on) ... we are 'affecting our island'.

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How can we deal with these 'issues'?

By realising that each one of us is an answer and acting upon that realisation.

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How are you an answer?

I have chosen to live my life as an artist, to use my 'tools' (concepts, words, music, photography and video) to stimulate awareness, provoke thought, shift perspectives, inspire, empower and uplift (both myself and others) whenever and however I can.

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What is the next step?

To begin.
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(Stay tuned for the upcoming steps -

starting officially on Monday 16 January, 2006)

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Elspeth

If I were Prime Minister

Someone asked me yesterday in a comment what steps I would put in place "to deal with the issues affecting our island" if I were Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago.

At first I was thinking about what I would do if I were PM ... and then I thought "Well, I'm not the Prime Minister and never (say never) will be ... so what's the point of thinking about/saying what I would do if I were? "

I'm me. What steps would I put in place to deal with the issues affecting our island?

You're you. What steps would you put in place to deal with the issues affecting our island?

(Although "would" has a tentative feel to it ... as in "I would, if I could" ...)

What steps will we put in place to deal with the issues affecting our island?


I often think about that: the fact that each one of us has the power to change something, even if it's a small thing. Cliche but true. Many small things add up. It makes me sad and tired to see this country in its current state. Such a beautiful place, beautiful people, but ...

Elspeth

Shooting the blimp and the sunset

On Saturday gone, I was shooting the sunset up at the cross and arch on Mount St. Benedict (monastery).

(N.B. I hadn't actually started shooting at the time I took this photo. Physically impossible since the lens cover is still on).

Note the plane (BWee?) appearing as a small dot in the sky.

When I first got to the Mount that afternoon, the new red and blue blimp was floating over Champs Fleurs.

It then drifted (very!) noisily past the Mount and spent some time hovering over Tunapuna and environs ... before making its way back to the POS area. My video footage (one hour of it) features roughly five minutes of the blimp's distant, egg-shaped silhouette moving slowly across the space under the arch. Anyone watching the footage (who does not know about the blimp) may begin to believe in UFO's.

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Elspeth

On the Beetham

Driving home last night on the Beetham Highway

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Light on earth,

Light in sky:

Cars and stars go shooting by.

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Elspeth

Who is he?

I first saw this sign on a lamp pole in Chaguanas, on my way to a meeting. At the time I thought it was related to a domestic issue - someone putting up a sign to expose a dishonest 'horner man' from the area or something. Then driving through Port of Spain the other evening, I saw a similar sign tacked up on a lamp post outside the gas station with the Quik Shoppe (lower down from Strand Cinema). I began to wonder if it was a nationwide thing ... most likely politically motivated. Does anyone know who he is and what he lied about?
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Elspeth

New Year, New Life

I have been toying with the idea of buying a new guitar for a while now. My current guitar is 26 years old, sounds dull and tired and the low E string rattles against the first top metal bar on the fretboard. However ... this is a faithful guitar and has played a major role in helping me to compose all of my songs. So I decided to go the refurbishment route and give my guitar new life.

My guitar, sitting in the passenger seat, goes for a 'makeover'. All of the stickers are over two decades old (except for the UK one, which is 2 years old).

It looks like a simple place, but they do magic inside.

On Saturday, I took my guitar to The Music Shop on Oxford Street, P.O.S. A while ago I had given a friend an old mashed up guitar that a migrating friend had given me (telling me to "use it in a piece of artwork or throw it away because it is beyond repair"). My friend took it to Music House and they fixed it up like a dream. The tone was so sweet and ringing that it was surreal. I know they will do a great job with my guitar.

The stickers are off ...

The women in the shop, Elizabeth and Patrice, gave me great customer service and were very personable. When I encounter good customer service I will mention it, because it is such a rarity in TT these days. Whilst we chatted, Elizabeth helped me to peel off the stickers and, on a bill, wrote a list of all that would have to be done: change tuning pegs, change strings, glue down base (lower part of body was peeling back slightly), change bone, change "knot" (whatever that is) and sand down body but don't varnish (since I want to paint it when I get it back).

I'll get my "new" guitar back in about 2 weeks and the job will cost me roughly $300.

Elspeth

Happy Anniversary to me

One of the little daisies growing through cracks in concrete or asphalt,

up at Mount St. Benedict Monastery

Today, the 8th of January, is an auspicious day for me. It marks five years since I quit smoking and drinking alcohol and coffee. It also marks one year since I started this blog!

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Elspeth

House of Love

Yesterday I was on Freeling Street in Tunapuna. The parking space I found was in front of a well set-up vagrant's dwelling place on the sidewalk near the library. As I stepped out of the car, I noticed 'Love' written on a brick. I then saw another Love message written on a piece of bright yellow plastic in front of the doorway. In retrospect, I would have stayed longer and gone in for some closer, more detailed shots of things inside the abode - e.g. there was a small ceramic angel lying face down on some fabric, deeper within the structure. I didn't get a shot of it.

See the six shots I did take (here).
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Elspeth

Drive by Shooting

I often wonder at some of the terminology used in the media/areas of the creative industry -derived from words which, depending on their context, can be seen as negative or destructive in everyday life (yet used to create) ... E.g. Violent (Let's shoot this) ... Injurious (Cut here) ... Fast paced/speedy (Zoom in/out) ... Like sudden extremes of weather (Brainstorm) ... Explosive (Boom mike) ... and more. Then again, it has traditionally been a predominantly male industry.



The above image is the one I liked best from yesterday's 'round' of shooting. From a distance I noticed three or four massive cranes towering into the sky where #1 Woodbrook Place is being built. They looked majestic and proud, yet invasive. I stuck my camera out of the window and shot them as I drove by. When I looked at the image later (when I'd stopped the car of course), I was surprised to see that I had captured only one of the cranes ... and along with it, a telephone post with a vine growing over it, mirroring the shape of the crane. It says to me: man is destroying Nature in order to build his own structures ... whilst Nature quietly tries to build herself back in the midst of it all.
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Elspeth

One handed driving shots

Here comes the rain again,
Falling on my car like a memory,
Falling on my car like a new emotion

My main reason for getting my new digital camera - Canon A620 Powershot (christened "Love Bee") - is that it's small enough for me to carry everywhere and, being 'point and shoot' with manual capabilities, it gives me the option of either just pointing and shooting or 'composing' a shot by fixing my own exposure, etc. instead of just being totally manual. (Still not the same as using my regular Pentax film camera, but I like it for what it is and what it can do - much of which I am yet to explore and discover). Previously, for digital stills, I was using my video camera (which also has digital still capabilities), but is too bulky to carry around wherever I go and requires me to use both hands for operation. Love Bee allows me to do things like drive with one hand and take pictures with the other hand without having to look too long (if at all) at my subject(s).

Like a bridge over Caroni River,

I will lay me down

Yesterday on my way to and from a meeting in Chaguanas, I held the camera up as I drove, randomly snapping as I drove past people, places and things. I'm beginning to feel like one of those parents obsessed with taking photos of everything their new baby does (e.g. Johnny touching a leaf for the first time) ...

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Elspeth

Pieces

Close up reflection of my camera lens in a mini disco ball

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The days of 2006 so far seem to be moving swiftly (it's already the 4th) ... yet in a way they also feel slow and dreamlike. Perhaps because I don't feel as though I've fully landed after my month away. These first few days since the 31st have been spent cleaning out, throwing away things I don't use anymore (some clothes, papers and objects), rearranging, creating space around me. Pieces of the past making way for now.

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Elspeth

Carry us

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See a few more of the pictures I took while I was away HERE.

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Elspeth

Some pics

A Swiss Snow Poem:

Barb, J, Me and Co,

Making shadows in the snow

(Engadine Valley, Switzerland)

London said goodbye with a persistently rainy day

To see some more images from my England/Switzerland trip,

click here.

N.B. I had about 500 and more photos, but just selected a few to give an essence of the trip.

Elspeth