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January 27, 2010
Get real
I found myself pondering the nature of reality today, as one ever so often does, on a grim and rainy January's day.
In search of cheap and cheerful retail therapy at my local Oxfam store, a rather pretty scarf caught my greedy eye. As I started inspecting it closer, the man behind the counter helpfully pointed out: "It's not real".
That threw me. Was I loosing grip on reality and the object in my hand was just an illusion that didn't exist at all? Was I hallucinating? Or if not 'real', maybe it was an 'ideal' scarf, in a Platonic sense - you understand - and not sartorial..
A few long seconds of eternity passed before it dawned on me: I wasn't holding that most coveted of all scarves - the divine Hermes - but an imitation, a cheap copy, replica, a fake! 'It's not real' wasn't a metaphysical statement after all but a fashion statement, so to speak..
I bought it anyway, but thanked him for reminding me of what's real in the real world.
Incidentally, as well as a scarf, Hermes was a god of commerce, thieves, and border crossings..
Posted by Marzena at January 27, 2010 08:22 PM