I came in to write a private chapter, but after an e-mail from a friend I realized we were having a convergence of thoughts and wanted to post this story/message she sent along:
Washington DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.
4 minutes later:
The violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the till and, without stopping, continued to walk.
6 minutes:
A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.
10 minutes:
A3 year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly, as the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced them to move on.
45 minutes:
The musician played. Only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace.
He collected $32.
1 hour:
He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.
This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities. The questions raised: in a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?
One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be:
If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments .....
How many other things are we missing?
I have been pondering heavily about observation and perception in the every day...the seismic change in the way we now interact with world, what of that folds into what we see and hear, and how we retain imagery? If I can shift my perception even a little bit doesn't it rearrange the maze I am wandering through, the path ahead? How does observation change with aging? If I am becoming less observant what can I do to exercise that brain matter so nothing is surrendered?
Perception is an organic concept. It changes with everything: light, time, position, attentiveness, and on and on and on. I can offer you my meager words about what I am experiencing, but I desperately want to view things from behind YOUR eyes. Why am I so anxious for this? Is it fear? A desire for a deeper connection and understanding? Proof of life? Proof of visibility?
Empathy isn't enough...I want to know how your joy or pain compares with mine, your eyesight...hearing. What is common in the ways our brains act? Uniqueness is spectacularly possible, yet so many start in adolescence craving sameness. My desire for sameness can still pop up. I am like an actor with intense stage fright in my uniqueness, I can be so frightened I nearly cease to exist.
So much spins through my head in my dreams. In my sleep I can't really rest...I am too busy! What are your dreams...waking and sleeping?
All this means memory is malleable as well, and I have been reading innovative studies that may impact how we treat people who have survived trauma and are suffering from severe PTSD.
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