During the past few months, I reread a book called Searchlights in People‘s Hands. It was written by Vivian Darroch-Lozowski who is a friend of mine. I had been feeling heightened despair and fear over the ongoing violence of further war and degradation of nature. Surprisingly, I found solace in reading Searchlights even though it takes place on a future earth after catastrophic events have caused great destruction.
It’s hard to put Searchlights in a category which I think is a good thing. The closest description for me is that it’s a form of speculative fiction that explores the meaning of life of our species and of the earth. Vivian has included quotes from philosophers, scientists and spiritual teachers throughout the book. Some of these were beyond my conscious understanding, but caused me to deeply consider the nature of time and space.
The story centres around several human beings and other animals. There are two characters who are both human and plant plus human and butterfly. They all live in a territory in which the inhabitants have devoted themselves to exploring the nature of life. They are dedicated to finding ways of living other than the violence and destructiveness of past human societies.
I found the book beautiful and moving. It conveyed both a sense of haunting strangeness and familiarity. Given where we are in the world today, I felt we might be looking at a possible future on a charred earth. There are no pat answers to the questions raised in Searchlights in People’s Hands, but the place of creativity and openness in it helped me shift some of my fear.
Searchlights in People’s Hands by Vivian Darroch-Lozowski was published in 2023 by Penumbra Press.
Arts of May 