This was 2019 - Passing the torch

 

Alex Grey - The Torch

It is January 7th and we are sitting at a round table in the dining area of the Grey House. Lunch hour is over for guests and volunteers. No one is sitting at the other tables and there is me, Alex and Allyson Grey and Hospitality Manager Genevieve Wood listening intently. 

The night before I had left the house after dark to explore the Wisdom Trail that cuts through the surrounding woodland. Located in scenic Hudson Valley, NY, the artist retreat Chapel of Sacred Mirrors serves as a sanctuary for the creative spirit. It also acts as an exhibition space for the visionary artwork of the Greys and numerous other artists. 

Walking through the forest with a map of the domain and a small flashlight in hand, I froze up when I heard rustling bushes and noticed a silhouette nearby reaching to about hip height. The hunched creature made a hissing sound when I pointed in its direction and I turned away, returning to the path I had abandoned. 

"May have been a coyote. Or a bobcat," says Alex. 

"The animal spirits are not at peace," says Genevieve to the Greys. "They haven't gotten used to our human presence here yet. We have to respect their boundaries." The others at the table agree and, naturally, so do I. 

Youth for Climate 

Three days later I am back in Belgium. Riding the train from where I live to Antwerp there is a girl across from me holding a cardboard sign inside a tote bag. It reads 'Youth For Climate'. She exits at Central Station where she joins other students carrying other slogans: 'Protect What You Love', 'Where Is My Future?', 'Climate Change Is Happening'. 

2019 became the year of climate protests. Time Magazine's Person of the Year Greta Thunberg walked the streets of Antwerp on February 28th in solidarity with the youth movement. Parents and grandparents joined in that day to express support for the cause. 

Many of the protesters have been blaming previous generations for their inaction. I believe more progress can be made by sharing our concerns with those people that have come before us, without resorting to condemnation. Knowledge and wisdom must be imparted from one generation to the next. That is what we call 'passing the torch'. 

Midsommar 

This year's favorite film Midsommar takes that same notion of generational passage and turns it around in a horrific way. A group of American students are invited by their Swedish classmate Pelle to visit his hometown. They attend the midsummer festivities of the local commune he grew up in. Upon their arrival, Pelle informs the rest about the peculiar rituals performed by the Swedish community: 

"We think of life like the seasons. You are a child until 18, and that’s the Spring. At some point we all do our Pilgrimage, and that’s between 18 and 36. That is Summer. Then, from 36 to 54, you’re of working age, which is Fall. And finally from 54 to 72, you become a mentor." 

"What happens when you turn 72, then?" asks one of his classmates. Pelle makes a comical throat slash gesture, to the amusement of the Americans. 

As the story goes on to show, the people of the commune in fact do have an unusually cruel way of keeping traditions. The film slowly builds to an overwhelming finale, in which the evil spirits of the past are set aflame to make room for the promise of the new. 

Tool 

After 13 years, music outfit Tool returns with a new release: Fear Inoculum. The metal opus reaches No.1 on Billboard's Top 200, thereby dethroning Taylor Swift's 'Lover'. 

Just like on the two previous records, Alex Grey contributed to the cover art for the album. The imagery is a clear reference to one of Grey's earlier works, entitled 'Polar Unity' (1975). We see a form of tunnel spiraling from dark to light, a dim sign of hope amid a black mysterious vortex. 

In many ways, it feels as if we are living in dark times. The challenges that lie before us can be paralyzing and almost insurmountable, be it environmental, social or technological. The point may be to acknowledge this and to find purpose in consciously lighting the flame inside each and everyone of us. 

Vocalist Maynard James Keenan calls out in 'Pneuma': "Wake up now, child. Release the light." 

Wishing you warm festivities and an illuminating, wondrous new year.