jassy ramblin’
I haven’t written in a while- mostly because i haven’t known where to start. Being involved in this project has given me so much…and it’s made me question so much. It could be that because i have just finished 5 years of schooling and am now sitting directly in the existential void of: who am i? and what do i do with my life?
I have been thinking a lot about privilege—what i take for granted and how much my idealism is tied to the glory of youth. Although my political horizons are constantly expanding, i struggle with how much i take in because i am afraid of getting lost in despair. It is hard not to sound like a cliche of a young person struggling to find meaning…but heh, what can you do when you live in a shoe?
Often it can be difficult to imagine the distant war torn realities of others (especially for those of us who have never lived it), but i feel like it is so necessary that we at least try to get a sense. The more i learn, the more i feel that, to an extent, the wars and the destruction of other people’s lives are being fought for the comfort and luxury that we benefit from in the ‘developed’ worlds. I think we are all responsible for what is happening around us and ‘over there.’
I have spent my whole degree thinking about and questioning the role of art and activism- and theatre as a tool for social change. Over the past few weeks, i have listened to the guest speakers and audience members talk at the panel discussions and it has been extremely moving because even though this play may not be necessarily converting people’s minds, it is making people think and feel and generating discussion about the how critical the situation is for Palestinians and asking the question: where are we in all of this?
In some ways the talk backs have felt like a forum for artists and activists to share their stories in relation to Rachel’s and to acknowledge that we are all a part of a similar movement. Friends of mine who have come to see this production have expressed how much it has made them reflect upon what they are doing in their own lives.
I think that is the power of this play- because it is one woman speaking for an hour and a half straight, there is space to filter Rachel’s thoughts and experiences through one’s own, and as a result question where you- as the audience member, sits in the midst of it all.
This being said, maybe just questioning ourselves and feeling the catharsis that this play invokes is not enough…maybe it needs to lead to action. When Cindy and Craig Corrie spoke at the panel discussion after the play, they expressed how many people have contacted them to let them know that Rachel’s words, and her story have inspired them to take action of one kind or another. Perhaps we need to realise what we are capable of, and Rachel is one example of how much change one person can affect.
I have more disjointed thoughts to share but i shall save them for another day…
Last night i watched (on google video) a man named Derrick Jensen discuss the premise of his books ‘Endgame.’
Somewhat related, somewhat not, but worth checking out:
