Making a Stand

We can all make a stand

[gomakeastand]

[gomakeastand]

Wearing the Brazil t-shirt in London's Olympic Park to kick off the World Cup. #worldcup2014 #handstand

[gomakeastand]

Go to vote. Make a stand. Handstand taken in Whitechapel, where the first Asian mayor in Britain stands for reelection amid controversial reports about corruption. Meanwhile European elections see an increasing threat from far right groups. Go to vote. Make a stand.

[gomakeastand]

This handstand took place in December 2011 in Chile (Summer in the Southern Hemisphere), at the oldest park in Santiago, and allegedly, in the whole of the Americas. It's the Quinta Normal, founded in 1842. Quinta refers to park, whereas Normal is a reference to the French "Ecole Normale Superieure", as the park was used for botanical studies.

I'm making a stand here with my nephew. He followed suit, with much better positioning than I could ever achieve. I find wherever I go with my handstands, children try to imitate and follow. Adults should play more. I make a stand for that.

[gomakeastand]

This was in January 2013 in London Fields, in East London, after several days of snowing.

London Fields is an unusual park in East London in that its shape is awkward. Heavily bombed during World War 2, streets around it were never rebuilt, leaving the shape uneven. It's a scarred park.

The beauty of snow is that it changes usual landscapes into unusual fairy landscapes, inviting us to play. Snow muffles noise, reflects light and awakens the senses. I make a stand for that.

[gomakeastand]

"If you don't stand for something you will fall for anything" - Malcolm X

[gomakeastand]

This was in September 2013 in the French village of Lautrec, where I attended a marriage of a very old friend, who's been around in good times and more challenging ones.

At least 4 people get married every minute in the United States alone. By the time you finish reading this, someone already said "I do".  Yet being witness to a life-long commitment of love by people who matter to you always makes a beautiful strong impact.

[gomakeastand]

And so began 2014, in Coron Island in the Philippines, after several days of snorkeling and diving around El Nido and trekking around the rice terraces of northern Luzon.

I've learned to dive quite late in my life and never expected to like it so much. I find our daily special awareness in dry land quite limited to two dimensions. Diving has been an invitation to look up and down, and enjoy a 3D world and life.