Daily Constitutional Special Correspondent David writes…
Epiphany.
An epiphany
(from the ancient Greek ἐπιφάνεια, epiphaneia,
"manifestation, striking appearance") is an experience of sudden and
striking realization.
Had
one yesterday. A London one. A recent London history one.
I
was in our local chemist’s. On West End Lane, in West Hampstead. The customer
ahead of me was a tourist. He was in the dark about what was special about the
date – the tenth anniversary of 7/7.
Chemist
was explaining to him. What had happened. What the significance was.
And
then cometh the epiphany. A flash of local understanding, of direct, personal
experience – as opposed to the “mediated” stuff (by mediated stuff I mean the
television coverage, the front page newspaper stories, etc. back then; and
indeed the sombre marking of the anniversary – the let-us-not-forget
commemorative occasion this week).
The
chemist – a really fine guy from the Indian sub-continent – said, “let me put
it this way, you see those shelves over there…”
(Gave
a sweeping gesture to a good size set of shelves – occupying fully a fourth of
that wall of his shop.)
“They
were completely empty ten years ago today.”
“Yes,
those shelves – the razors, the Gillettes, the men’s shaving kits.”
“Completely
empty. Sold out in a couple of hours.”
“Muslim
mothers coming in here and buying them and making their sons shave off their
beards.”
What
makes the “news” – a big story – is like a stone dropped into a perfectly still
pond. Where it enters the water – where it impacts – the splash – always gets
our attention.
We too
often forget – or don’t see – that when a stone gets dropped into a pond there
are ripples that go a long way out from the splash. We see the splash. Can’t
take our eyes off it. See the splash and maybe the first ripple out. Don’t see
the further out ripples.
There’s
something to be said for seeing them.
Fear,
anxiety, apprehension sweeping through a big subset of our neighbours – our
fellow Londoners – that’s “a bell that tolls for us” as well.
A London Walk costs £10 – £8 concession. To join a London Walk, simply meet your guide at the designated tube station at the appointed time. Details of all London Walks can be found at www.walks.com.










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