We worship Internet. As soon as we have the slightest question, without thinking, we type it in to get an answer. Not long ago, Wikipedia was for me one of the most important things to save if Internet were to disappear. An endless source of knowledge, just one click away.
Today, I found an old book about agriculture, a topic I’ve been passionate about during this lockdown. This book was given to me by my grandma a long time ago.
The content isn’t what matters here. I noticed that in this book, there were plenty of side notes left by my grandma and grandad, with some tips and notes to not forget their previous experiences.
This is knowledge that actually doesn’t exist in our computer memory and that can’t intrinsically exist. These side notes were about tastes, sensations, and mainly experiences of the past which aren’t transmissible to machines, content I couldn’t find on Internet.
Our elders are our collective memory. They share their knowledge from one generation to the next, but above all an experience of this world.
Since the beginning of Comme Avant, I regret not having understood this earlier, not remembering everything my grand-parents could have given me when they were still alive.
This COVID-19 virus is mainly tackling elderly people. Even if I haven’t lost anyone in this health crisis, I mourn the dead and all their lost knowledge, faded away before being shared. It’s a tragedy for their families and for the whole world.
They are way more important than we think. Part of the solution to climate issues maybe lays in their memory and they are simply waiting for some company and a bit of love to share their knowledge.
The current society hasn’t understood this. Their end-of-life merely consists in sitting in a chair, in a home, somehow supported until the end of their story.
Don’t wait any longer. Spend time with your loved ones and take care your elders. They are as important as your descendants.
Nil