During my trip to Durbs for my farewell Aroon showed me a most mind blowing snippet on You tube where a gentleman created a "virtual choir".H gathered videos of people singing the same song from across the world and synced them into one outstanding performance.
www.ericwhitacre.com/the-virtual-choirAt some point over the past month I came across the "Life in a day" story where a gent had an idea of putting together a movie which looks at the life in a day of people from all over the world.He had over 80 000 submissions from 192 countries all filmed on 24th July 2010."Life in a day"presents a microcosmic view of our daily experiences as a global society.I messaged Aroon immediately to tell him about this compilation.So last night as I passed Virgin megastore the poster advertising it jumped out at me from the window.(I didnt get hurt) Being a person who is so facinated by human experiences I had an urge to go in and buy it and watch it immediately.
www.youtube.com/user/lifeinaday I myself have had some beautiful human experiences this week and funny enough while I was sitting at dinner with some friends the other evening the more they told me about their life experiences the more I found myself thinking about how we all come from these different backgrounds yet share a similar sense of humor,share the same experiences and feel the same feelings yet in entirely different environments.(Of course I have been aware of this however one doesnt always give yourself the time and space to think about it in depth.) I also found myself telling a colleague this week that I am here for "human experience" and I tell you this week sure has been that.I felt a strong sense of emotion this week and allowed myself the space to feel it and be with it.Added to the mix I was tired as well so I am sure my emotions were doing some strange things to me.My heart was going through many different however beautiful emotions....seeing my dads sister evoked some emotion,processing the news that my sister is coming to spend time with me and I also received a long and beautiful email to me from my dear friend Hangwi who I met through "More to Life" who has just come back from one of the ultimate courses in the programme called 'Way of the warrior." She emailed me to share her experience with me and throughout me reading her email I had goosebumps and I teared and teared.I teared because she had a most beautiful "human experience" with people from all over the world. Just last week I was sharing with someone that I feel alot of people are stuck in the same daily routine not only because its habitual but its because they are avoiding the human experience of "feeling" and "thinking" about this gift called "LIFE'.Maybe people are scared of the unknown and therefore brainwash themselves into believing certain things to get them through their day.Everyday I sit on a bus with different nationalities and people from different walks of life and every morning without a doubt I think to myself as I scan the people..."I wonder whats their story and why they are here."Most of the people on the bus are plugged into earphones listening to music and have their heads down looking at cellphones. I feel sad when I see this day in and day out as they are missing out on noticing the beautiful people around them as well as the sights and sounds.Yes every morning we make our way through industria and I would agree that its not a pretty sight at all but if you look hard enough you will find some beauty somewhere.Once everyone gets to work the earphones come off,the mobile phones are put away and masks are put on to perform or act at work. The companies hallmarks are practiced and when they leave for the day the masks come off and earphones and mobiles come out again and heads are down.There are the few that do engage in conversation and laugh and smile before and after work however the bulk are stuck in this "habit".Gee I just recall two very heartfelt experiences that I had in the workplace over the past two days....(I thought my heart had had enough by then for one week but hey more came my way).One of my colleagues called to say that she had just had news from her hometown that her mum had had a heart-attack and was rushed to hospital and was not in a good state.I felt my colleagues pain so deeply as I could imagine the pain and anxiety she was feeling.The panic and the run around she had to endure in preparing to go home I knew too well.Here I found myself thinking that we all share these feelings and situations no matter where we from or our backgrounds.Yesterday another colleague of mine got back from vacation.He was away for a month and I immediately picked up pain in his eyes.I didnt ask too much and he tried his utmost to smile as everyone welcomed him back.I said to him "It must have been tough to leave your family after a month" and he said "Yes it was" and looked away. After an hour he came to my desk and I could read from his body language that he was uncomfortable about what he had come to speak to me about.Tears filled his eyes as he told me that he has come back from vacation to resign.His dad who has been suffering with a weak heart for five years and is now in a very critical state.His dad has asked him to come home to look after him.His dad wanted him to stay on and not come back to work his months notice.He mentioned to me that this was a very tough decision for him as he was going against his fathers wish and coming to work in his notice and then would go home.He said he had to also think about his future as he may need this company in the future and decided to do the "right thing". He is hoping nothing happens to his dad during his notice period and he shared with me that his dad was in hospital a few weeks ago and bribed the nurses to buy ciggarettes for him. My heart went out to him as I saw the frustration on his face around this and I could so relate to him with my mums situation of not being able to give up the cigarettes right until the end.My eyes started filling up with tears and I assured him that I am here to support him and chat to him whenever he needs to. He also shared with me that his brother had also come home to Kenya from the U.S as he has leukemia so he will be nursing his dad and brother. My heart was pounding by then......I kept thinking about how he went home on vacation to relax and enjoy it and had no idea that his journey was about to take a different path.
Anyway back to the movie.......I thought it was a great idea and a great project.Some beautiful cinematography and it just re-affirmed all that I often think about in terms of humans going about their daily lives in the world. The morning routines we all practice,the highs and lows of life,the fear of death,the fear of losing a loved one,the love we feel for each other,the beauty that surrounds us....we ALL experience it every day of our lives through different lens. I would say its worth a watch....there has been some mixed reveiws about it but in my opinion I am sure there is something that you would appreciate about it.Let me know what you thought about it or let me know which scenes were powerful for you.
