Flashes, images...moments that last a life time

     Inside every brain an untold number of images flash on and off according to time, circumstance and need. They are the tools of creative people, of artists, actors, singers, dancers, writers and even philosophers, scientists and religious persons. Every instant our senses register thousands upon thousands of the "pictures" we take of the diverse situations we confront in our daily lives. These pictures are unique because some are visual, others auditive, others related to our sense of taste, smell or touch. Since they are so many it is impossible to recall all of them,  or relate to them all at one given moment, so we conveniently store them away for future reference.

     Not only individuals, but also nations and ethnic groups store images in their collective memories; frequently these flashes condition behavior patterns. No person of Jewish faith can forget the holocaust; no Palestinian the destruction of their homes by invading Israeli troops. No U.S. citizen can free himself of those cowboy and indian movies, of the good guys versus the bad guys; no indigenous person in north or south america can forget the bloody genocide to which they were submitted...Argentines have their martín Fierro. Christians have the image of Christ on the cross; pre-industrial societies evoke the moon, the sun, the stars, trees...

    It is the power to observe and deduce on the basis of what we observe that allows us to create. That is why creative persons cultivate their memories--called emotional memory by Konstantin Stanislavsky. We see something and take mental note. A short time later--or even decades later--what we saw, heard, touched or smelt reappears in another context and helps us develop an idea more profoundly.

    A few examples from recent days in Buenos Aires, Argentina:

1) A bus stop shortly after midnight. A group of night owls are waiting the arrival of a delayed bus. Behind them, under the shelter, lies a man with his head on the curb and his body in the gutter. His eyes are closed and he looks dead, but he is breathing with irregular gasps. A man goes to a nearby telephone and calls the police. A policeman slaps the man's face to see if he reacts. He doesn't. He is taken limply to a police car, just as the bus arrives to take away the impatient men and women who have been trying not to notice the  plight of the man on the curb.

2) There is a casting for a commercial. The candidates have to get into a bathing suit, smile at the camera, present themselves and pretend they are diving into a swimming pool. Usually in the presentation the actors talk about their experience in movies or theater. One man decided to take a very different approach. After giving his name and age he said: "I want to make an important announcement: I have just decided that from now on I am going to be a homosexual. But I don't yet have a companion. If there is anyone in this room who would like to talk to me about my sexual orientation, I would be more than glad to have a chat..."

3) It is hot as Hell in Buenos Aires. Some youngsters, say around 18, are seated on the sidewalk guzzling beer and joking. One of them suddenly spreads his legs and another hops on top, lowers his pants and acts as if he were going to make love to his drunk partner. The others laugh their heads off. Passersby look away in shame or pronouce words that cannot be understood.

4) You buy the newspaper and open it to the international page. A photograph catches your eye: a father is rushing with his son in his arms. The child's face is completely crushed, burned and distorted with blood and raw flesh. In the background other men are fleeing from what appears to be a bomb: white smoke, like that caused by phosphorus...

5) A Greek dancer bends to pick up the glass filled with red wine as a crowd of dancers and onlookers push and shove to get as close as possible. The dancer's body swerves downward and he opens his jaw just slightly to fit the edge of the glass between his lips. As he is straightening up, the glass falls to the floor and the wine spatters about as if it were blood.

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