20 May 2011. We are sitting on a terrace in sunny California, in a small town in the San Francisco Bay Area, having blueberry pancakes American style with Simon. He is a friendly and articulate man, a real-estate agent in an upscale part of town with a double university degree in computer science and biochemistry.
A little black bird is nesting in a tree in front of our table. Every time someone passes under the tree, it flies from its nest and, to our great amusement, pecks the person on the back of the head. Even an unsuspecting dog gets a peck. The food is good and the conversation wanders far and wide. It’s a beautiful, relaxing afternoon.
Except - it could be our last...
At least, that is the conviction of Simon. We met him at Family Radio, a religious broadcaster in nearby Oakland. Family Radio is at the center of a campaign to warn the world that 21 May 2011 will be Judgement Day. Like many of the people we met over the past weeks, Simon has wound down his business activities. Why amass more worldly goods if there is no tomorrow? Instead, he focuses on studying the prophecy and getting the word out to friends and family. This comes at a huge emotional cost: many regard him as crazy for holding his conviction. But unlike many conflict situations - where people remain convinced that they are right and the "others" are wrong - Simon will shortly find out whether his Judgment Day beliefs are true or false. Not according to someone else’s standards of the truth, but according to his own.
Lunch is finished and we prepare to leave. We have to return to Oakland, where we plan to go into the night of the prophecy with a group of believers. Farewells are cordial. “The real me believes this, but there are other parts of me which are still in doubt”, Simon told us in an interview a few days before. The next day, on 21 May, he will be the first of the believers to call us.
This blog post is a shortened version of a blog written for "Wrong!", an Open Night at the Wellcome Collection in London, 5 July 2013 7-11pm. Sheila and Kris will speak about Right Between Your Ears at 8.45pm. The event is free. First come, first seated. More details at Wrong!
A little black bird is nesting in a tree in front of our table. Every time someone passes under the tree, it flies from its nest and, to our great amusement, pecks the person on the back of the head. Even an unsuspecting dog gets a peck. The food is good and the conversation wanders far and wide. It’s a beautiful, relaxing afternoon.
Except - it could be our last...
At least, that is the conviction of Simon. We met him at Family Radio, a religious broadcaster in nearby Oakland. Family Radio is at the center of a campaign to warn the world that 21 May 2011 will be Judgement Day. Like many of the people we met over the past weeks, Simon has wound down his business activities. Why amass more worldly goods if there is no tomorrow? Instead, he focuses on studying the prophecy and getting the word out to friends and family. This comes at a huge emotional cost: many regard him as crazy for holding his conviction. But unlike many conflict situations - where people remain convinced that they are right and the "others" are wrong - Simon will shortly find out whether his Judgment Day beliefs are true or false. Not according to someone else’s standards of the truth, but according to his own.
Lunch is finished and we prepare to leave. We have to return to Oakland, where we plan to go into the night of the prophecy with a group of believers. Farewells are cordial. “The real me believes this, but there are other parts of me which are still in doubt”, Simon told us in an interview a few days before. The next day, on 21 May, he will be the first of the believers to call us.
This blog post is a shortened version of a blog written for "Wrong!", an Open Night at the Wellcome Collection in London, 5 July 2013 7-11pm. Sheila and Kris will speak about Right Between Your Ears at 8.45pm. The event is free. First come, first seated. More details at Wrong!
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