In one of my earlier newsletters When The Streets Talk, I mentioned being an avid people-watcher. What accompanies such an interest is usually a view on the unpredictable nature of the human condition. It’s riddled with countless aspects of, and things that people do that are of questionable nature to themselves and society. This story looks at a pattern I began to explore around 2010. It all began with a paper cup!
My morning commutes included waiting at a bus stop. I saw this paper cup impaled on an iron gate. This was the catalyst for my multi-year long series. It’s that simple! Stories and ideas can come from any aspect of life at any time. I continually maintain an objective perspective when I move about in my travels.
Many patterns of life are easy to spot—even when you’re not actually looking for them. This pattern I began seeing in 2010 was as visible as watching an evening sunset. Trash, litter, garbage thrown away willy-nilly to the point it’s “normal” in societies. Garbage is everywhere! So What?!
Again, it is so pervasive that many people just toss their garbage to the curb at their earliest convenience. As you can see, sometimes thrown into/onto someone else’s property. Imagine the level of caring that just this one action reflects on… I digress.
I usually allow viewers to create their own narrative with the photographs I show. In this instance, I need to relay what was on my mind as I observed this particular view. Why did the person who threw this cup away, take the time to place it inside the gate? As if the care in throwing something away is more important than where you actually throw it away. Trash can?
This is something I figure many people have a need to gloss over. Out of sight, out of mind! Though it’s not out of sight! Every day, we think hundreds—even thousands of individual thoughts, I understand how this aspect of life may not be anywhere near important in people’s lives. I respect that. My primary thought is the amount of time it took for something like this to accumulate without removal.
This repeated cycle where people do the same things over and over again through years of conditioning, is apparent in the two photographs above. They’re both located under the Marcy Avenue elevated subway station in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. One from 2012, the other from 2021.
What would be your thoughts if you came across something like this? Contribute your answer in the comment section below.
We’re impacted by many things in life that we don’t even see. Like a traffic jam where you can’t see the cause because you’re too far away. I believe we all can be affected in some way, by the causal nature of just throwing things away. Throwing a lit match into a garbage can affects more than just the person who lit it.
I hope this article has informed you, maybe even enlightened you on a perspective about life that you were not aware of. Let me know if it did.
As always, I thank you for taking the time to read through this newsletter.
Til next time…
Kenneth