January 2024
Grass and Pool · Sanabria, Zamora, Spain. 2017
Gelatin silver print, 26x26 cm, limited edition to 30 copies.
"Today we find ourselves inundated by stimuli over which we can never truly position ourselves. We have so many images in the mirror that the connection with the mirror is lost".
Lama Ole Nydahl
Just a few days ago, I had a telephone conversation with an old photographer friend of mine. When I asked him how he was, he responded quickly and without hesitation.
—Well! I'm always well!
—Oh! And why is that? —I can't deny that his response surprised me, of course, in a positive way.
—Because I have had the great fortune —he continued— to be able to develop my skills throughout my life, and that is the most important thing! Because there are many people who have not had that opportunity and go through life without knowing who they are.
At that moment, the wise words of this man were etched into my mind. He, who lives alone, wakes up every morning with the almost infinite task of updating his extensive photographic archive, scanning each negative, editing it, and meticulously saving it on his computer. He has a purpose, a task, and a reason.
In a way, it was like finding the formula for happiness, or at least, the first drafts. And as my partner Monica would say, this is nothing more than one of the foundations of occupational therapy.
In a society where fortunately, we have almost all our basic needs covered, self-realization through the development of our skills is undoubtedly what brings us closest to the reason for our existence. I doubt there is anything that affirms our identity more than what we are capable of creating and giving to the world.
Everything else, all those things we think we need to be someone and that are sold to us. All those groups to which, in some way, we need to belong to feel part of something. All those things we believe are part of our identity and that do not come from within us. All those things are just shadows in the mirror.
In this new beginning of the year, my only wish is that you have the opportunity and determination to continue developing your skills, whatever they may be, and to see your reflection clearly in the mirror.
Comentarios