I also feel a bit overwhelmed by the world – and I didn’t even need COVID or Floyd or Trump or anything for that. Just the sheer amount of input we get from fb, instagram etc. is enough for me. A nonstop flux of craziness and randomness. Artificial lifestyles and happiness all around. A roulette of values, a compass spinning insanely.

I think there’s this hard to detect, underlying ethos telling us 24/7 that we *must* reach as many people as possible at all times. We must be heard. Change minds. Make the difference. Be special for the world. That insidious message comes from movies, books, TV ads. Even in social networks like instagram. That totally staged photo where a guy or a girl stands defiantly at the tip of that insane cliff, looking at an unbelievably gorgeous landscape… it carries the same ethos: you must be special, unique, you must conquer the world. It’s glory or nothing. This is so ubiquitous that now we take it for granted. It became part of being human – at least for the unlucky ones who live immersed in this cultural environment.

So now I’ve been trying hard to wrap my head around this ethos. In order to isolate it and nothing short of uprooting it from my mind. I’m trying to go local. Not in the sense of consumption, but in my very perception of the world and my purpose in it. I’m learning that life may be about our close friends, family, community, and not about changing the world or saving the world or being the next Jobs or Tony Stark. It may be about connecting to a relative or neighbor, not about trying to rise above a deafening noise to be heard by the thousands. I believe this change of perspective is helping me.

I like your reviews. If you enjoy making them, keep up with the good work. Or put it on hold – it’s always an option to get back later.