#055: Golden Hour

Impulse control | Unfinished Work | Giving Up on the Year (but not each other)

David Schmitt b.1994

Hi friends,

Does December make any of you do strange, impulsive things?

On Thursday I asked my hairdresser to give me a fringe. I did this around ten years ago and vowed to never do it again. Alas, I will now spend the festive season living with the consequences of that impulsive decision. To my horror, I’m now looking a little bit like my nemesis Taylor Swift. Maybe it’s Karma for writing this.

In productivity-bro land, this bit of the year is for ‘locking in’ - an equally derranged phenomenon in which entrepreneurial men (it’s always men) double down on achieving their goals before the end of the year. No new years resolutions for them! Nosiree! For today is the day of resolution!

After a week in which our house was plagued by the flu, I’ve officially locked myself out of the year and have given up on (most of) my self-imposed deadlines.

One of my resolutions was to send out Golden Hour every Sunday, but last weekend I couldn’t manage that. So consider this more of a leisurely stroll through the good and bad of the past couple weeks.

Here’s what went right …

→ Playwright Tom Stoppard (unknowingly) cured cancer.

This letter, which was published in The Times in the week following Tom Stoppard’s death, reveals how his play Arcadia helped one audience member make a breakthrough in cancer research. Michael Baum’s understated letter nods to the mystery of chance encounters, those fleeting and seemingly random moments which lead to the indelible transformation of our world.

→ Eurovision boycott gathers momentum

Five countries have now publicly committed to boycotting the Eurovision Song Contest due to the confirmed participation of Israel. Iceland, Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and the Netherlands will not participate in next year’s competition, citing the genocide of Gaza and ongoing oppression of the Palestinians. ‘There is no peace or joy connected to this contest as things stand now.’ said Stefan Eirikksson, Director General of Icelandic national broadcaster RUV. [BBC]

→ This week marked the 10 year anniversary of the Paris Climate Agreement.

Rebecca Solnit has written a brilliant piece for the Guardian exploring to what extent the agreement can be considered a success.

Before Paris the world was headed for 4 degrees of warming; it’s now headed for 2.5 degrees, which should only be acceptable as a sign that we have bent it and must bend more and faster. In the best-case scenario, the world’s leaders and powers would have taken the early warnings about climate change seriously and we’d be on the far side of a global energy transition, redesign of how we live, and protection of oceans, rainforests, and other crucial climate ecosystems. But thanks to valiant efforts by the climate movement and individual leaders and nations, we’re not in the worst-case scenario either.

… And some things that didn't.

→ Five prisoners hunger striking in solidarity with Palestine have been hospitalised and are now in a very serious medical condition.

‘I have watched and felt my body get weaker and smaller, which no amount of planning or knowing in advance can actually prepare you for. It’s scary. I have struggled quite a lot with the cold and fatigue and muscle pains, and the only way I have been able to endure and persevere through this is not just by remembering why we are doing this, but also by remembering how much the Palestinians have endured. My mind takes me to Gaza, where I ground myself by reminding myself that there is a pain and suffering that I will never have to know, because the Palestinian people have been the front line in the struggle for our collective humanity for so long.’ - 20 year old imprisoned activist Qesser Zuhrah, who has faced Islamophobic treatment in prison.

An NHS Doctor told Middle East Eye that ‘It cannot be understated how serious this situation is.’ When questioned about the case, Minister for Justice David Lammy replied that he was unaware of their situation. [Middle East Eye] and [Dazed]

→ Trans exclusion in women’s spaces is becoming the norm in British institutions

Girl Guiding UK and the Women’s Institute (WI) have announced their intention to exclude trans women from their organisations after a controversial Supreme Court ruling clarified that the terms ‘women’ and ‘sex’ refer to biological sex rather than gender identity. Pro trans organisation NION Women commented that ‘Trans girls are girls who deserve the same opportunities we had: to build confidence, make friends, and discover what they’re capable of. Trans women are women who deserve community, dignity, and the chance to participate in the spaces that matter to them.’ [Scene Mag]

→ Hanukkah shooting on Bondi Beach

On Sunday a mass shooting on Bondi Beach, Australia, intended to target Sydney’s Jewish community during the religious festival of Hanukkah, killed at least 11 people and wounded a further 29. One bystander commented that ‘It was kind of like fish in a barrel’ … ‘A few people helped a few older people get up and get out of there, but it was like there were lots of bodies on the floor.’ [Al Jazeera]

Words I’m carrying into the coming days …

→ ‘Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.’ Perkei Avot

→ ‘Open the refrigerator. Sixty million tons of food wasted annually—enough to feed every hungry American four times over. Check the junk drawer. Fifty million tons of e-waste worldwide, most of it shipped to Ghana and Nigeria, where children burn circuit boards to extract copper. Look in the mirror. Microplastics in your blood, your lungs, your brain. In placentas. In breast milk.’

A haunting essay on the history of human consumption from Jermaine Fowler [The Humanity Archive]

→ ‘Ah, enough about angels!

Let us speak instead of the dignity of humans.

Human being—astonishing creature—who are you?’

I always enjoy reading the Nobel Prize lecture, this year’s by Nobel Laureate László Krasznahorkai is no exception.

What went right for you this week?

Let me know in the comments.

The Murmuration is made possible because of the support of my amazing paid supporters. They chip in around £3.50 a month in order to sustain this writing and protect the time it takes to put it together. If you value my work, becoming a paid supporter is the best way of showing your support. Thank you!