Stop

by Veronica Foale on July 25, 2010

in Life, Navelgazing

Stop.

Just stop,

Take your moment; this moment and stop. Breathe in and savour the smells of living and stop thinking, because the world is likely to overpower you with its wrongness.

With the wrongness of a 6 year old not knowing what a tomato was, with the wrongness of a chicken living 39 days from birth to slaughter, with the wrongness of oil spilling into the Gulf and the cheers when the leak is stopped, but why are we cheering? Aren’t there still eleventy million barrels of oil floating on the water down there? Aren’t there still pelicans suffering and turtles being burned and a journalistic silence being held?

Why are we smiling?

Because it could have been worse.

Worse? It is worse. THIS is the worse.

When the spill was stopped, we shouldn’t have cheered. It was not a success. It was a chance to just stop and breathe out.

In relief.

In disgust.

No cheers, because things are still broken. Stopping the spill is not better.

Things are not suddenly fixed.

The wrongness is still there, lurking under the surface, tainting the smell of seagulls with a darker undercurrent.

When hormones can produce you a chicken for eating in 39 days, we should not be cheering for profit margins and congratulating ourselves on a faster turnover. When did people become removed from suffering? When did we become so overloaded with wrong that we couldn’t see for the dark? When did humans lose their humanity?

But, but there’s too much. I … I can’t.

Stop.

Just stop.

Take measure of where you are and breathe deeply.

When the tipping point comes, when you say ENOUGH and you stop.

Then stop.

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Trish July 25, 2010 at 1:49 pm

I’m stopping …it’s far too stressful to keep thinking about all these ‘wrong’ things.
I was gobsmacked too by those kids…

kim(frogpondsrock) July 25, 2010 at 4:59 pm

Breathe, pumpkin Breathe.

Barbara July 25, 2010 at 7:01 pm

It’s hard though. Sometimes it feels like if you stop, you won’t start again and if you stop holding your breath something might break.

Megan @ Writing Out Loud July 26, 2010 at 7:20 am

That Jamie Oliver show was SCARY stuff. I was crying watching it – not just at that extreme example, but the truth that so many kids are raised on that type of food and lifestyle. How’s that for an upbringing – here you are, darling, here’s the start I’ve given you in life, now go and live the rest of your life based on THAT start. Shocking.

Kirrily July 26, 2010 at 4:27 pm

I don’t think I breathed throughout that entire series (I’ve seen it already), it was actually a good ab exercise, frankly, because I held my tummy muscles in so tight, which I tend to do when stressed….

And the oil spill. I cannot even stay abreast of developments, I am not strong enough to hear/see the evidence and think I will function better not knowing – I am not even kidding :(“`

Kirrily July 26, 2010 at 4:27 pm

Kirrily: I don’t think I breathed throughout that entire series (I’ve seen it already), it was actually a good ab exercise, frankly, because I held my tummy muscles in so tight, which I tend to do when stressed….And the oil spill. I cannot even stay abreast of developments, I am not strong enough to hear/see the evidence and think I will function better not knowing – I am not even kidding

Marylin July 26, 2010 at 11:13 pm

I watched the show that Kim had posted on her blog. I cannot believe that some kids really don’t even know what simple veggies are! My jaw actually dropped.
I must confess to being one of those who stick their heads in the sand about the BP spill and such. If I didn’t I’d feel so sad and guilty I think it’d overcome me. x

river July 28, 2010 at 8:07 pm

i have similar thoughts, but you express them so much better than I ever could.

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