Re-action by joseph
May 27th, 2007I’m on my way to a Christian Aid book fair whilst writing this. It’s being held in the big church at the east end of George street in Edinburgh, the same church my father wandered into some time ago, not seeking absolution or sanctity but seeking a place to empty his burgeoning bladder. Unable to locate a lavatory he decided to bare Percy to God and urinate against one of his pillars. Before fleeing the watery crime scene, he thanked God for his hospitality but gave no thought to the poor creature who would have to disinfect the area. This horrid incident has left me with a guilty obligation to turn up at the fair every year and buy books to somehow compensate for my fathers indiscretions. Thousands of old books, thousands of beautiful old words, trapped in life worn bindings, dying to be read, dying to be spoken, to be brought into our consciousness, the dead writers resurrected and bursting with the life and vigour that drove them to write in the first place, their stories and feelings woven into ours. We keep them alive. In return they keep us alive by providing us with a place to retreat to when the cruelty and horror we see every day is too much to bear. We find through reading, a deeper understanding of the human condition and a deeper understanding of the part we play in making society what it is. All our actions have a reaction, even if our action is inaction, by setting up positive reactions I think amazing things could happen. It begins and ends with us. The world is what we make it, by understanding and addressing the negative aspects of our character, we will make the world better. Where do you start? You start by thinking about the person who has to clean up your urine before you leave a glossy puddle somewhere stupid. I think we will get there (well, with the possible exception of my father).