kat newman

Stuck and Guerrillas Manifesto, circa. 2329

In a time, long past, before we are as we are now, our human ancestors split into two groups.

The largest group obsessed over things called bar charts, pie charts and donuts. Again, and again, and again, and again, and again, they drew them. Again, and again, and again, and again, and again they talked about them. Again, and again, and again, and again, and again they exchanged them. Again, and again, and again, and again, and again they smiled and nodded and agreed they should do something. Again, and again, and again, and again, and again they wondered about that something. We call them the Stuck.

We do not hate the Stuck. We thank them for sharing what they knew, and we feel sympathy for their situation, but we are also angry at their inertia.

The smaller group met discretely and whenever they could. They lived with and among the interstices left to rot. They did not think about us but only of their present and oftheir kin, their neighbours and communities they needed to help. They knew their lives were entangled with the effluence of human consumption. Quietly and slowly, they sowed and tended to the gaps, and they flourished. We call them the Guerillas.

The Guerillas are not heroes. We thank them for their doing and are awed by their simple acts but feel aggrieved they were not more vocal.There is no great triumph here to be known. We remember why and are reminded how.

Together we cultivate response-ability.