This is now our second week of social-distancing in Austria. Do we get used to it? I don’t really know. My mood swings at least increased, that’s fact.
The outside world is quiet, even early morning traffic came almost to a halt. Pedestrians disappeared from the streets except of a few lost creatures strolling aimlessly along.
Not that we have been more social in our behavior before Corona. Under todays circumstances it’s just becoming more visible. Most of us stay at home. We are not passing by each other focusing on mobiles anymore and by that bumping accidentally into each other.
Many give me a wide berth or choose another direction at an intersection. We live in strange times. People keep distance, some give me a smile, other faces seem rejecting in fear of me.
Until today we have no idea how long this social control and isolation will be ongoing, only speculations are out there. In my opinion speculations are the worst, they only increase uncertainty and fear.
I post this video with my dear friend Herwig Steiner, because it breathes the current atmosphere. Even though, we shot this clip in 2015 on our ride from Abu Dhabi to Hatta, it is a video essay which changed its timbre due to the current living conditions.
If I didn’t tell you anything about the circumstances of the shooting the video, you might believe me that it reflects our current situation. It makes me sad that democratic values - if they ever existed, I have my doubts though - vanish from the surface so fast. It seems that wellbeing - how questionable this term may be - makes the unthinkable possible within the blink of an eye. The consequences leave us behind with a huge question mark …
But even now, the sentence still applies "by endurance, courage and passion we change”.
Keep a safe distance, but don't lose contact!