I’m sure we are all familiar with the phrase “May you live in interesting times.” Which according to the internet search I did in preparation for this intro, is not actually an ancient Chinese curse. Regardless of the source, we all understand the meaning of the phrase. We all understand that “interesting times” is meant ironically. We all know we’d rather not live in such times.
Historic events tend to leave uncertainty in their wake. It is often the case that “interesting times” simply means that something very terrible could happen. It could be that nothing will happen. Perhaps I should say it might be that nothing else will happen. Lucky for us we get to live with the dread.
Life of course goes on even in the midst of the uncertainty. Something terrible could happen today, but then again that’s true of every day. Perhaps interesting times are no different than any others. Perhaps it’s only a matter of scale. Or maybe perspective. Sometimes the only thing to do is to carry on. We can still find a few bright spots in all the darkness. However, we will not find them if we don’t keep going.
