Production line of symbols
Why do human beings create symbols? Are we supposed to use them as maps or guides for making sensible choices in our lives? If we feel a calling to make symbols in any shape and form, is it the actual products that matter the most, or the journeys we embark upon to make and create them?
I ask these questions because I derive a lot of fulfillment from being immersed in creative processes. It can be tricky negotiating one’s way through external expectations, based on social groups such as age, creed, heritage, religion, race, etc, but the act of creating is the thing that floats my boat the most.
Show business can be deadly, even though it offers alluring rewards to those who play their cards well. Delivering products for those who live to eat (instead of eating to live) seems to be the bottom line of its functionality. There is also the added inclination towards distracting folks from seeing the world as it truly is. I wish I understood these truisms before, as I would have made better use of my time and energy.
Most of us need to duck and dive, sometimes dining with the showbiz devil (hopefully using a long spoon). But there are some very basic questions that practitioners ought to ask themselves when they look in the mirror.
The key question should be as follows. Do you know how to play? If there is any befuddlement around giving an answer, then perhaps they ought to be doing something else.
