It always astonishes me how many people are up at whatever ungodly hour I leave my bed and switch on the computer. That, I suppose, is one of the strangest things we have accepted as part of our daily lives over the past few years… that friends the world over can stay in touch instantly… as long as we are awake enough to electronically cross the International Date Line.
This morning, for example, before dawn paints the sky with light, I will have sent emails to several continents, exchanged comments with the four proverbial corners of the sphere of earth and completely forgotten I should still be in bed.
We think no more of ordering a gift from the night side of the world than we do of nipping to the corner shop and can find out anything about anywhere at the touch of a keyboard.
We hop on a plane and cover thousands of miles to visit friends. Cross seas to visit Christmas markets or soak up some winter sun. We see with our own eyes the remnants of ancient cultures once seen only by the wealthy or the adventuring explorer. Cultural diversity is part of our everyday life and the world becomes smaller by the second.
Even language is no longer a barrier, with electronic phrasebooks and translators.
Yet we still cannot manage to see our fellow humans as family, we still fight, we can still manage to look with suspicion on those we perceive as different, even when they live next door… when we share the same dawn.
We are an odd lot, humans.
France & Vincent 