|
Not one Issue of DE I goes by without unpredictable encounters which form a chain of coincidences that lead to inexplicable results.
Usually we call this ‘the professional creation of co-incidences’.
In this Issue, the co-incidence took place in the American town of Boca Raton in Florida State, a quite little place for people whose life income had been guaranteed by previous generations.
Here an Art Festival with the participation of some of the world’s most famous jazz and classical musicians, writers and film-makers is held for local millionaires. Everything is understated, homely, but very expensive. Two of the future heroines of this Issue (no-on even suspected that would be how it turned out), writer Ann Patchett, and opera prima Rene Fleming, were conducting a joint master-class. Despite the engaging nature of their conversation, more than half of the auditorium was distracted by a girl the same age as Lolita but with all of the other more obvious qualities of a Scarlett O’Hara. She stood out not so much because of her age as due to a mesmerizing attractiveness which left most of the male audience members embarrassed even to look in her direction. It made no sense to pay her a compliment – from the day she was born he has known that she looks gorgeous.
14 year old Madison Macintosh is quite happy to shake your hand but her eyes, instead of expressing interest, reveal an enigmatic chill as if through her veins run not blood, but some cybernetic lubricant which keeps her body temperature fixed at 32 degrees Farenheit. Sooner or later she warms up a bit, and we find out that Madison is half Polish and half Scottish. She was educated at home. Her iPod contains only classical music. She is sure that she will become an opera singer on the level of Rene Fleming. And she’s not discouraged by the fact that this is a country that instead of a magazine about opera, offers you a magazine by Oprah Winfrey. In fact, it’s impossible to discourage her at all. She was already refused an introduction to her idol Rene Fleming once, but that didn’t stop her from trying again. Her determination isn’t bolstered by psychic energy or special training. She doesn’t waste her time analyzing winning or losing, but she understands perfectly that one look at her creates pleasure and satisfaction. It’s understandable that this effect is quite frightening.
10 minutes after we met, DEI made Madison’s dream come true by introducing her to Rene Fleming. The next evening ‘Scarlett 2008’ sang at a private reception creating a furore. Wealthy Americans could see in her a personification of a generation that would never be. Madison’s gentle but cold smile reflected in the tears and precious stones of everyone whose hand she shook after her performance. She was ecstatically happy to be the centre of attention.
Madison is still only a child and there is hope that she will find some other way of achieving happiness. Maybe she won’t – have to, or want to. In any case, this Issue of DEI contains plenty of other thoughts, unpredictable encounters and ‘professional’ co-incidences that we are more than happy to share with you.
© DE I / DESILLUSIONIST ¹-1. "FROM THE EDITOR"
|
