Earlier this week, I heard that Banksy was having some kind of action or installation in Stockholm on this Sunday. Since it so happened that I was alone in the apartment, I figured that I would go take a look, especially since I’ve never been to something like it before.
My walk there was very nice. The sun was shining, I had a Cornetto, and it was a 20 minute walk to get to where the happening was to be. I also stayed outside a cafe for a while because they were playing Lifts You Up (which made me a happy cat). When I arrived, there was people everywhere, and everyone was looking for what the piece would be. The one obvious thing was some graffiti on an elevated room on a roof that said “Yes…….. I am lonley” [sic]. I didn’t fully understand it.
Next to the biggest mass of people was a flight of stairs that got up to the seventh floor or something like that. A lot of people was walking up the stairs, so I figured there was probably something at the top. As I was going up, others were coming down. Some of those coming down said “There is nothing up there.” and tried to tell us to not go up. I continued for two reasons:
- That statement is unequivocally always true. Nothingness is always present.
- I figured part of the message was to encourage people to not do it, anti-herd mentality etc.
It was interesting to see everyone still climbing the stairs even though they were told there was nothing to see up there. Turns out they were right, there was absolutely nothing to see at the top of the stairs. I got down, and by then I was kind of not interested of going on more of a hunt to find contemporary art that I wasn’t even sure was there. I started walking back, having a feeling that I was missing something and that I was an uncultured p(h)easant that just didn’t get it.
Turns out the whole thing was probably fake. Someone was just using the Banksy name and fame to bring tons of people to the commercial gallery district in Stockholm. Kinda funny in retrospect really.
Anyway, as I get back to Karlbarg, I decide to take a little pause. I was standing overlooking the rails and the water, the sun pretty much straight ahead of me. I closed my eyes and just listened to the sound the city makes. As I was doing this, I realized that even though I was trying to, I could not hear the ringing in my ears. It was just… silent. I haven’t heard silence for so many years, and this quickly became overwhelming to the point where I started silently crying the happiest tears I’ve ever cried. During these tears, I thought about what a good place I am at right now. I spend most of my time with people that I love, doing things that I enjoy and working at a place that actively makes me into a better person.
When I woke up this morning I had no idea that this day would bring something like this, but I am very happy that it did. Carping of this Diem; check.