A woman walking past storefront windows and twin sisters sitting in a chair are the main characters of Sandy Florian’s short stories included in her book Prelude to Air from Water. It is a collection of short stories that expose the complexity of postmodern lives and reveal the multitude of feelings and sensations which people experience at the given moment of time. When comparing oneself to the characters of Florian’s stories it is clear that they are equally similar to and different from the majority of Florian’s contemporaries. Like Sandy Florian’s characters, we fail to capture the emotional volatility of every moment and do not notice the small changes taking place and affecting our lives.
Sandy Florian’s characters are usual people. They are no different from the majority of Florian’s contemporaries. Dressed casually and busy with their lives, they do not even notice how the Moment changes their realities. At first, there are six-year-old twin girls sitting in an old chair, dressed in matching flared skirts (Florian, 2010). A minute later, there is a woman dressed in a teal colored dress and walking past tinted storefront windows (Florian, 2010). Florian’s characters are more than usual; they are often unnoticeable. They are no different from the gray mass of their contemporaries; yet, there is something that makes them special.
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It is the Moment that makes these people special and unique. The Moment enters their lives unexpectedly. It is never usual, nor is it common. The Moment changes every second, and every second makes it unique and unrecognizable. This Moment is like a ghost of something that cannot be captures or aroused (Florian, 2010). The Moment enters the room where the two identical twins are sitting (Florian, 2010). The Moment passes the woman who is walking along the sidewalk in her teal colored dress (Florian, 2010). The Moment is everywhere. It is omnipresent and omnipotent.
No one notices the Moment, but the Moment sees everything and everyone. The Moment perceives the twin girls as nothing but interchangeable elements of a simple plan (Florian, 2010). The Moment feels that the woman in a teal colored dress is merely a sign of things to come (Florian, 2010). The woman passes the Moment and loses it without even realizing it. The twins lose the Moment without a tint of regret because they know that a few minutes from now a New Moment will come, bringing new sensations and impressions.
A brief comparison of my own life with the lives of Florian’s character brings a unique insight into my life. First, I can see that all our lives are made of multiple moments which change each other and never repeat. Each moment is a new moment. Each moment is a unique moment. Lost Moments never return. Lost Moments result in a sense of regret and emptiness. Sometimes, a lost moment can forever change our lives; for example, if we fail to catch an opportunity to see a close friend before he dies.
Like Florian’s characters, I do not notice how Moments change one another. Moments are not interchangeable. Rather, they create a sequence of meanings and events which we eventually call “our lives”. We often take the presence of the Moment for granted. We live our lives thinking about future Moments and hoping that next time we will catch our chance to become more successful, more powerful, and more professional. Our lives are so hectic that we rarely think of the value of every Moment. We do not realize that every Moment can become the last one.
I do not agree with the way Florian interprets the meaning and vision of the Moment. Based on Florian’s stories, the Moment treats us as insignificant, unstable, volatile, and highly intangible. However, I believe that for each and every moment our figures are significant and valuable. Our appearances change; our characters change; but throughout our lives the Moment hopes that we will eventually notice its presence and capture its meaning. Unfortunately, this is rarely the case. Like Sandy Florian’s characters, we fail to capture the emotional volatility of every moment and do not notice the small changes taking place and affecting our lives.
The Moment makes people special and unique. No one notices the Moment, but the Moment sees everything and everyone. The Moment is everywhere. It is omnipresent and omnipotent. Throughout our lives the Moment hopes that we will eventually notice its presence and capture its meaning. Unfortunately, this is rarely the case. Like Sandy Florian’s characters, we usually fail to capture the emotional volatility of every moment and do not notice the small changes taking place and affecting our lives.