2780 Digital detachment and "a post-post-modern type of grieving"!
austraLasia #2780 Digital detachment
and "a post-post-modern type of grieving"!
CEBU (Lawaan, Talisay City): 5 January 2010 -- No
doubt the writer of this reflection will prefer to remain
broadly anonymous (though he will not be so to those who know
him well!), but methinks his reflection on an unexpected New
Year 'gift' might be good for us all! Hope he forgives me for
this, but... read on:
"I write this amidst the joy and fanfare of the turn of the year
and of Saint John Bosco's on-going pilgrimage in our country.
On 1 January 2011, upon arriving from our caroling at around 9:30
pm, we got the shock of our lives. Burglars had broken into our
novitiate house taking with them three laptops, one computer
system, three bags to bring the afore-mentioned items (which also
includes two external/back-up hard drives, three SD cards, two
thumb drives, and a bag of cables used for webcasting).
The burglars forcefully snapped three prongs of the bars
protecting the window of our computer room. They were able to make
a space big enough for a kid to enter. They left a pillow, and a
2x2 inch, 3ft long piece wood. It happened around 6-9:30pm when we
were all out for a mass and caroling.
Aside from losing the gadgets useful for our studies and
apostolate, what depressed us most is the fact that the computers
and hard disks stolen contained files and photos we're keeping for
our chronicles and archives including our reflection papers,
reports and researches. The other hard disk has all the photos and
videos documenting the visit of SJB's relic in FIS (good thing we
kept some in DVDs and the documentation team of every setting is
still within reach, although most of the raw footages taken by the
FIS-SoComm Department were not saved).
On a personal note, I lost 5 years worth of literature, academic
papers, photography, graphic design and animation. Which includes
the whole design and administration files of www.godslovetotheyoung.info
.
What have we learned? First, there is a pressing need to secure
our place. We've learned that this is not the first incident of
robbery in the novitiate, although this is the biggest (news even
reached the local newspaper). As of writing, we have installed new
locks and had our window bars reinforced.
They are using kids. Although we have not yet identified suspects,
we are very sure that they've involved a kid. Based on what we saw
-- small entrance through the window, small finger marks -- we
surmise that a young kid was asked to enter the room and take the
items. The police shared the information that burglars involve
minors because they can't be put in jail. We are saddened by this
fact. All the more we feel the need to be with the young, educate
them and be signs and bearers of God's love to them.
~
On an even more personal note, having gone through a
post-post-modern kind of grieving (a digital one, you may say), I
realized that it is a kind of parting, a detachment. For 5 years +
I was holding dear those works of literature, art, thinking that
they are mine and I could someday brag about them -- showcase them
in a book, or what have you, and take pride and credit. It has
brought me back to earth and allowed me to lift up He who is and
has ever been the real source and author of all that I have done.
It's by God's grace that I was able to wield such skill,
creativity, talent to make those, IMHO, beautiful, inspiring,
thought-provoking works. And, they are gone, physically -- or just
in our empirical world. But I believe, the moments I spent doing
them, and the experience I had and people I met (and perhaps have
touched) in the process, stay with me forever. It's God's grace
that I'm able to write this -- and look at what had happened in
this manner -- now, too. Humbling.
I believe, this experience also prepares me for our application
for vows come this 31 January (it actually gives me more time to
pray and reflect since I won't be working much on the DB Relic
documentations, i don't have the files and the computer to work
with :D ).
I also believe that God is preparing something for us, for me.
Whatever it may be, I believe that it is something better,
something greater, or rather, it is the best for me!
---------- Let's use this simple but profound reflection to pray for a
batch of novices from around the region (FIS,FIN, CIN) as they
prepare for their first vows on 31 January; there's some
detachment yet ahead!
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