Life
is full of Contrasts and Parallels.
The
opulently wealthy exist side by side with the
ultimately poverty burdened. In some
neighbourhoods, the rich and the poor live
harmoniously together, as do the beautiful and
the ugly.
Somehow
the contrasting existences exist simultaneously
in a parallel and virtual reality, in which
every so often, an imbalance causes attention to
be drawn to one area, and we see the contrast
more clearly. However, the reality does not
change the Status Quo. After the publicity and
exposure, life continues as before, and we have
a contrasting reality in a parallel existence.
Nothing has really changed.
Personal
Contrasts are the most illuminating.
Take the Mother realising her youth and beauty
is being upstaged, as her daughter competes and
overrides her supremacy. Suddenly the once young
and beautiful mother is contrasted by the now
young and beautiful daughter, and you hear,
"She is beautiful and just like
you dear....." while you both preen
with delight.
Then
there is that period of rude awakening as you
realise she has taken your place, and sometimes one
feels like the Queen in Snow White. After
some initial antagonism, finally acceptance and
enlightenment, and the situation continues, a
parallel contrasting reality that both have
accepted as status quo.
The
daughter has a daughter of her own, and is now
facing the same reality. I clearly remember the
time my mother felt threatened by my growing
womanhood, and also remember as clearly, the
time my own daughter caused me the same
enlightenment and growth.
Environmental
Contrasts are especially profound. The
single rose blooming in the rubbish dump, the
carefully maintained miniscule garden in the
unkempt railway track, the modern high-rise
adjacent to the humble cottage or the derelict
ruin, both in living use.
Life
is full of Contrasts that run parallel. This
book is about Contrasts that exist in harmony
or discord, simultaneously next to or
adjacent to each other, in Parallel Lives.
Whole
countries live parallel lives, yet within
each country, the same contrasts occur. It is
the same in nature. The dead bloom clings to the
same branch right next to the living beauty. The
caterpillar destroys the life of the leaf, so he
can live and transform into a beautiful
butterfly, to enjoy the nectar of the bloom
before he fades.
You
are invited to ponder the many Contrasts and
Parallels that life has to offer, and show how
the Contrasts and Parallels exist and occur
alongside and beside each other.
You
may illustrate this in paint or Photograph, in
Literature or in verse, or simply create your
own reality in your own unique and individual
way.
Artists
are themselves a vital part of this Contrasting
Parallel that is the Universe. It is only
through the eye and soul of the Artist, that
Contrasts and Parallels becomes beautiful,
and Art itself becomes the Ultimate Virtual
Reality.
