DAY 015 – DESIGNING DANGEROUSLY

Consume Stories

We had a fire in the backyard last night. To clarify, it was planned and contained. People roasted marshmallows. As members of “Team BSU Sound” sat around the fire, we primarily exchanged stories, anecdotal evidence that we have been alive and in the world. This oral tradition is how we exchange knowledge, and a subtler, deeper knowledge than the kind we glean from textbooks and spit back out on exams.

Today, even after a shower and fresh clothes, the smoke clings to me. Our stories and experiences are the same way, in our pores, messing with (in this case changing) our distinctive chemistry. If trauma and environmental changes can alter our DNA, story has the potential to alter us permanently, minor revisions on top of minor revisions that rewrite the story of us in the world.