Head Space Daily Words...

We’re a week on now from that incredibly awful night in Paris, which feels so unreal that you almost have to double take to remind yourself that it actually took place. The events that unfolded were like scenes from one of those gruesome gun laden computer games but this was not fiction. A lot has happened in the seven days since. At 11am on Monday, a work colleague and myself shared in the minute’s silence, broadcast live from Paris on the BBC. A football match, which personally I felt should have been cancelled, was played at Wembley between England and France. Some things are greater than football and I feel the sport should have bowed its head respectfully and called it off. The best reaction came on Monday when Paris stuck up two defiant fingers at the terrorists as citizens went out en masse to pack their cafes and restaurants, taking to twitter, spreading the hash tag “je suis en terasse.” This was followed on Tuesday by what seemed the equivalent of an old style Western shootout meets Homeland, as several of the terrorists were shot dead in another scene that felt like it was stolen from the realm of fiction. My eldest son informed me during the week that the Isis group of terrorists aren’t real Muslims, as the Koran says that if you murder a fellow human being, it is as if you have killed mankind and is strictly forbidden. He is a wise lad. Last Saturday I went to the Royal Academy with my youngest son to see the Ai WeiWei exhibition. After the events of the previous day it was good to get some inspiration from someone who has spent his life fighting injustice. I’ve just been watching the Mercury Music Prize and the guy who won, Benjamin Clementine (see HSD Tune,) an artist I have never heard of, gave a very emotional speech, having lived in Paris for several years. His music sounds like it will be worth a listen. Art and music help to make sense of what life throws at us. Lets see what the coming week has in store...