Reflections

On the Nature of Walls

Image. San Gimignano, Tuscany by Chelo Leyria

Uncertainty and fear encourage the creation of walls.

We build them around ourselves, then our possessions, ideas, communities, and, increasingly, identities. It reminds me of the fortified hilltop towns in Tuscany, where a combination of rivalry and egos led to the building of fortified towers, separating factions within walled perimeters to create a fractal landscape of defensive fortifications within a culture of conflict, and now fallen mostly into ruin.

Times such as ours require theories of change, part a sense of scientific “truth, " part overarching philosophy, to create containers in which we can hold and examine what we are experiencing around us and try to make sense of it.

“Uncertainty is a fundamental and irresolvable characteristic of our times, no matter how good our observations and theories for explanation are. The way to go about this is to make sure that one has the ability to recognise how far one’s mental model is correc…