DEFAULT

What's in it for me? If the discussion can only come to that then it is for naught. Living as free people, just as doing art, is pure expression. To focus prematurely or obsessively on the question of self interest and short-term escape from fear of uncertainty or the slipping of power is to lose the essential experiential meaning of exchange and the moment for enlightenment is lost. The value in the exchange is always conjectural, contextual and transcendent. The master work comes about in the enactment of rigor, creativity, persistence and mindfulness. If what is represented to us by our leaders is so dissonant with our sensibilities then we are free to organize our selves and means of exchange in as rigorous, creative, persistent and mindful way as our collective endeavor can sustain. If there is only passing attention or absorption then the return is minimal. Sustainability is not passive but an intentional and enacted process. There will always be a crux, a nexus of attention and action, across which there is an exchange of meaning and significance. The temporal, the non-intentional, is always at play. This is the hope. It is also the refuge of the eternal speculator, searching for that big break. We have collectively reached a point of unsustainability. Perhaps this is the cosmic joke. Then laugh, and entertain yourself and others with the capturing of moments through the transcendence of art. Participate, share and benefit in the provenance of this moment. What's in it for me? Depends on the spirit of the moment.
Amandla Ngawethu!