aBe PaZoS SoLaTie

White absence of noise

Fri Jan 20, 2012

Image

I exit the building and start walking.

The white stuff changes many things. For example, it redefines something I normally give for granted: the fact that the ground is a safe place to walk on.

It also changes the way the world looks like. Sidewalks are gone. They now blend with streets, roads, grass, sea and forests. It’s all part of the same thing, and I find it extremely beautiful. Things are now black and white. Black for the trees, white for everything else.

Soft shapes without edges. A complete transformation of the landscape in matter of days. A transformation that does not distinguish between man-made or natural, nor about borders of any kind. A transformation done by tiny particles, weak and insignificant on their own, but powerful when collaborating together. Men fight these symmetric weightless particles with noisy weightfull machines, in an attempt to keep the black of the roads unchanged.

It’s not the first time I realize all this.

What surprises me this time is the silence. I see cars passing by and my brain tells me there is something missing. I see those cars, but they make no sound.

I observe the red light turn green. Fifteen cars accelerate completely silently and I must laugh. I can only hear the engines of those passing right next to me. The sound immediately fades away. The tires, which are usually the noisiest part of these vehicles, are now silent. It feels like several layers of carpets had been laid on the asphalt, and inside my ears.

The experience is like a gift for someone like me.

Then, suddenly, it comes to my mind. Many people live their lives this way, not hearing what they see.

Categories: photo text Tags: snow tree observations Places: finland