I’m growing increasingly resistant to smiling – you know, the Botox, fixed grin sort. Over recent times I’ve become increasingly irked by newscasters and chat show hosts who flash their bleached pegs at every opportunity. It’s banal, pandering to some sort of choreographed cultural norm.
There’s no end to it. A news item on the slaughter in Gaza or a natural disaster is accompanied by studied gravitas – furrowed brow, tight lips, unblinking stare – followed shortly thereafter by a sudden bout of toothy glee that does away with all that pesky miserable stuff. Anyone who’s seen the brilliant ABC series, The Newsreader, will know exactly what I’m talking about. And now that the festive season is upon us, the rows of harmonica-like teeth are being paraded at every turn. Oh Buddha!
The truth is, I don’t feel jolly-holly Christmassy. I know that’s heresy. But after witnessing the awfulness of the referendum, the racist outcome, the massacres in the Middle East and bloodletting in Ethiopia, Myanmar, Sudan, Ukraine and elsewhere, and the COP28 fiasco etc, I can’t bring myself to festive cheer. One of my friends advises that feeling this way is bad for me, as if ‘negative’ emotions can be turned off on and on like a tap.
But I can’t forget the images of Gaza or the Ukraine, the ongoing traumas, the patent cruelty, illegalities and brutalities that sit deep within.
I can already hear the squeaky door being opened to a torrent of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) labels. After all, the prevailing ethos in a society of spectacle and illusion is to at least appear well adjusted. To what though?
I’m reminded here of Jiddu Krishnamurti’s comment that: ‘It’s no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society’. This seems like a profoundly sensible observation.
Do you, like me, feel bamboozled by the fact that cruelties are so easily glossed over? Lied about. Dismissed. Let’s consider the following:
‘Australia isn’t racist.’ Really?
‘Israel adheres to international law.’ Yeah, right.
‘American and Britain uphold human rights.’ Oh, come off it!
‘We live in a great democracy.’ If only.
‘We’re doing all we can to cut GHG emissions.’ Pull the other one.
‘We’re a good decent country.’ Here’s a mirror.
‘We are one, but we are many.’ I’m going to be sick.
Etc, etc.
Love, kindness and compassion
In the midst of all this, however, there are pathways to joy, and examples of people and places that exude love, kindness and compassion.
The Paddock Project comes immediately to mind. It sits on several acres east of Mullum. The word LOVE is displayed in giant white capitals for all to see. When I first saw this sign I winced – mainly because I know some locals who are less than loving – but now, I smile. Yes, a great big authentic yellow-toothed smile. Because, under owner/manager, Karen Gross’ watch, The Paddock exhibits all the characteristics of love in action: its tightknit staff, numerous volunteers, work training opportunities for people living with disability, its commitment to land regeneration, and producing chemical free, affordable food.
Winner of the 2023 Access and Inclusion award at Byron Shire Council, The Paddock has become an epicentre of cultural and social activities where visitors are greeted as long-lost friends. Sounds corny, but it really does feel that way. That’s why I go there.
The other day after visiting The Paddock, I watched footage of a grieving mother in the Gaza-Israel conflict. The heartache etched deep in her face spoke volumes of the shocking consequence of hatred and cruelty. To contrast such suffering with what happens at The Paddock is to invite a story of other possibilities.
As Karen told me; ‘The LOVE symbol has an element of the Big Banana about it, but it’s a good way of welcoming people to the town. If we all acted with love, the world would be a much better place. The Paddock Project is all about creating community. Too many people live in isolation. Mullum’s blessed with having so many places where people can connect with others. It’s what makes the town. We have to get out of our isolated homes and be with others; love, connect’.
Neither Karen nor I would be naive enough to suggest that love conquers all (good if it did!), but along with kindness, antiracism, nonviolence and commitment to social justice and human rights, it can lay the foundations for more peaceful ways of being.
As the festive season approaches and brings forth much of the warmth and closeness often absent in our lives, we might commit, each of us, to trying to routinely treat each other with dignity, kindness and respect. If the festive season reminds us of the importance of such things then, just maybe, I might begin to feel a tad Christmassy.
Let’s see how it goes. But hey; happy you-know-what!
