Lesson II: Close Encounter

Lesson: There are more strangers than friends in this world...What can you learn from them?

Yesterday, my friends and I headed down to Port Zayed for a small photo shoot. When we arrived, we saw a man fishing in front of a massive fishing ship…what could be more inspiring than the little guy competing with large industries? We approached him hoping he would allow us to photograph him and after some exchanged hand gestures (he did not speak a word of English or Arabic) he agreed to pose for us. We weren’t looking for these staged ‘tourist’ images but we could not explain to him that we wanted him to continue fishing as he was. Offering me his fishing line he insisted on our participation.

There was something very refreshing about this encounter; none of us ever felt uncomfortable, we were having too much fun learning from this stranger. The images we captured were candid, genuine and what I believe to be a statement of positive cross-cultural interaction.

I was taken completely out of my element; I found myself fishing during the hottest time of day, halfway around the world from where I was born and raised, with a stranger who I couldn’t verbally communicate with. I realized I am an alien in a country that is not my own. We are all human and we are all capable of being kind to one another regardless of the obstacles we face through difference.

How can you ever meet anyone if you never interact with strangers? Don’t be afraid of people; take the time to notice the similarities and differences you have with everyone around you. For terror to survive we are meant to feel distant, incompatible and alone. We are none of these. You will never learn anything from people who are exactly like you.

Italia

Da una piccola scintilla può scoppiare una fiamma.

From a little spark may burst a flame 

– Dante

Two months ago when Ray suggested I fly out to Italy to spend a weekend with him on set it seemed impossible…nothing but a nice idea. I am half Italian and have never been to Italy, I haven’t seen Ray in almost two months and I love being around film. Why wouldn’t I make this idea work? I began harassing immigration for my passport/emirates residence visa, researching the cheapest flights possible and trying to get ahead in my schoolwork; all I could think about was getting to see him.

I wish I could explain how incredible it feels to be reunited with someone you love after being away for a while. I can’t. Every cliché in every romantic scene in every movie cannot communicate the excitement and overwhelming emotion in living it. When it comes to him I have thrown away any hesitation; if he is there, I know I will be happy.

* * *

“We picked up right where we left off. There was no moment in these three days with you where I felt like the distance and time apart was creating distance between us. You haven’t changed.”

* * *

There are certain things in life that you are so sure of that acting on your certainty is completely necessary. If you have the courage to go on a crazy adventure, the means to get away and the love to enjoy it…do it. Everything in our lives is ephemeral so do what makes you happy while you can. This weekend, I have fallen in love again with the same man. Not to say I had fallen out of love, but I feel I have fallen in love as an adult. I am humbled by my past in the greatness I see in my future.  Four plane rides, a train ride, four cities, three days and one love…

And I can go on and on…but who cares? 

– Gnarls Barkley

What Next?

One lifetime is quite insignificant in the existence of our species. If you want to really reflect on the hurried nature we have all been born into, think about the hundreds of thousands of years that have brought us to today – the very instant that you are reading through this sentence. There have been hundreds of thousands of lifetimes we had nothing to do with and an innumerable amount of lifetimes we may (or may not) affect in the future but will never know. Without digging too deeply into my interest of spirituality, physics and philosophy, I want to bring up the importance of appreciating the unknown essence of the future.

Imagine yourself on a timeline flowing through a million possibilities at any given moment but only ever experiencing one. When faced with ‘choices’ in our lives we often think of limited amounts of options– life is not simplistic enough to offer limited options. How do we explain what happens to us?  Here in Abu Dhabi many of us are unsure how we made it here; I have been asking myself this question my whole life. Everywhere I find myself, in every aspect of my life, I question my role in making it happen.

Perhaps predestination has played out in my journey through my conscious reality, perhaps when I thought I was choosing a certain path it turns out I was just born at the right time. I feel like I am the ball dropped into a ball drop game where a series of unavoidable pins deflect me right and left out of my control until I make my way down to the winning position. The unpredictable last minute risk I took in the fourth grade has thrown me into a series of successful accomplishments where I now find myself at the best school, with a supportive family back home, the best friend I could ask for, being with the love of my life, and being able to maintain a decent mindset. Everything has been set up for me too perfectly and only now is it making me nervous. When is everything going to stop working out for me? I am beginning to anticipate the storm...the skies have been clear for far too long and I am too blessed to not be thinking about a threatening future.