A bit of a summer evening

Recently there was a very strong wind in Minsk. During an evening walk, I noticed a lonely autumn leaf on a tree. Unfortunately, a photograph will not convey its horror and steadfast resistance to the onslaught of the elements. The wind was dying down - you can take a break. But then a new gust is stronger than the previous one - the leaf again tries to hold on with all its might.

I watched the confrontation between nature and nature. People separate themselves from the world around them, oppose themselves to everything. “How she raged!” (nature) - as if there is me, and there is she. But when you look from the side, you see more clearly how everything interacts with itself. Like a dog trying to bite its own tail.

A steadfast autumn leaf! I think it won that night, to proudly fall on the wet November asphalt in the morning. Autumn. Once again, nature throws off its clothes, as it will one day throw us off.

See also The Fall

If the crowd doesn’t like (approve) - most likely, everything is done correctly. There is only one criterion of quality - sincerity. That’s it.

I’m on my way to this, but I can’t yet throw off my dependence on approval and come to crystal sincerity. We are social creatures, which means we depend on the opinions of other people. Conformism is encouraged in systems.

At first glance, it may seem that it is easier for an introvert to run away and hide from the world - “I’m right, and you’re all assholes!”, “Nobody understands my genius!” And indeed, you need to avoid the crowd so as not to lose yourself. But you definitely can’t hide from one person. I talk to myself for hours every day – in text, in my head, and even out loud. The arguments there are more intense than those in your get-togethers with colleagues at planning meetings, with friends in cafes, or cute purrs in the comments. I have nothing to fear – there is blood and flesh, joy and pain, a black abyss and blinding light. Most people avoid all of this in themselves, keeping it on the farthest shelf, never approaching or opening it. But it’s all here. It’s all already in me. This is me!

A constantly open daily note on my phone, so that I can catch the flow. If I sit down to write on purpose, I’ll end up with a plastic piece of crap that can collect a lot of likes, but will kill me as a person, a human being, a creature.

So likes aren’t important? It’s a paradox, but they are important. A like is one form of showing love¹. This is a good person and I want to express my love to them. It’s nice to receive this because it required an internal dialogue and awareness on the other side. So, there is a similar person there.

I know people who never like. I know people who like everything. I know the mechanisms of both.

In the meantime, all I can do is try to push people away, because attracting people who don’t resonate with your personality will always lead to negative friction. I call it Anti-Marketing.

P.s. This topic is very interesting to me and I will definitely continue to think about it and share it with you. In the era of marketing, we have forgotten about sincerity. In the era of likes, we have stopped valuing feelings.

Instead of a like, write to me and tell me what you think.

Recently, I came across a family of swans in a park not far from my home. I had gone out to take photos of nature, but ended up staying near these beautiful creatures for about twenty minutes. People were taking pictures, someone was explaining something about the swans to their child, and I was taking shot after shot, enjoying the moment and feeling a connection with something real and beautiful.

By the way, did you know that swans grunt? Perhaps it’s because they feel threatened (“I’m in charge here!”), or maybe they’re asking for food and attention from passersby, or even showing gratitude. Let me know in the comments if you have any ideas.

The other day I voiced my short film “Sunset (I know it will happen again) ”. It was very important to me that the voice sounded natural. I did several takes¹ - where I feel relaxed, there are always rough edges and mistakes - here you can’t hear a letter, there the accent is wrong. It seems simple - try and everything will be great, but then the soul is lost and I hear artificiality. There are projects where this is not so important, but here it was extremely important, and I am my own strictest director.

This makes you think about the fact that the present is imperfect. Expressing yourself honestly may lead to dissatisfaction with the result, since it is human nature to make mistakes.

I made a short film based on my poem. This work is very important to me because I aimed to convey as accurately as possible the feelings I experienced this year. Made with love.

Since ancient times, people have tried to illuminate their lives as much as possible, because darkness is frightening and arouses exploratory and conquering interest. But today this leads to light pollution ¹ of cities. And if we understand light not literally, then it is the desire to “illuminate” as much as possible around us - more information, more “useful” surfaces and screens, more contacts with people per unit of time. Sounds good, but it has a terrible effect on us every day - defocus, laziness and loss of interest, because there is so much around us right now.

You need to be able to turn off everything for yourself, and then gradually return only what is truly significant. Here is your true interest right now and nothing else exists at all - the candle flame. At this moment, the surrounding emptiness creates space for perception of the most important thing. After a while, when your eyes get used to it, you begin to distinguish the details of the space, you will see more context, more colors. The space will acquire more meaning, because it surrounds the object of your interest now.

For example, you are sitting opposite another person. You are calmly communicating. Pay attention only to this moment. Turn off and remove your smartphone from the table. Instead of a noisy and crowded cafe, sit on a bench in the evening park or in the kitchen with a cup of tea. The person opposite you is a candle flame - only its light is important now, only it illuminates the space.

This can be applied to the project you are working on, to information, to rest. It is not for nothing that people prefer a paper book instead of a digital one - nothing should distract attention, including the medium.

Only the candle flame reflected in your pupils.

Photography is an opportunity to capture a moment as I see it. A reflection of the external. I am only an observer.

Poetry is an opportunity to capture thoughts and feelings so that they do not scatter across a sheet of paper. A reflection of the internal. Again, I am only an observer.

There is one goal. My guiding star.

I took a walk and photographed a beautiful autumn sunset at the Chizhovskoye Reservoir in Minsk.