Apology for time change

I like the time change. The hours must change with the seasons and the light must be morning and the dusk gloomy, now that we say goodbye to summer (which in our land, let’s face it, has been slow to leave, like those guests who linger for more conversations, when they are already on the doorstep, saying goodbye), because the “clear Sun, friend of heroes” (Antero) we miss most to start the day in a heroic and conquering way, even if our destiny is the most modest job. Already the melancholy of the departure of light, which evokes the heartbreaking do not go gentle into that good night (Dylan Thomas), we experience it earlier, in the middle of the afternoon, and we feel the comfort of that good night that awaits us, not the macabre night of Dylan Thomas, just that night that returns us to home and to intimacy, even if the house is small and the intimacy is sad. In any case, it is the night that returns us to ourselves, after we have shown the clear Sun that we do not belong to the world of heroes after all.

In countries further north, where the days are shorter and the nights dominate the days and spirits, we find, they say, the greatest number of readers. I don’t know if it will still be like that. Personally, I like reading and writing more in the mornings (to pretend that I belong to the friends of the Sun?) and at night is when I find myself and the inner monologues that I should soon transform into writing, but that are waiting for the “clear Sun” of the morning. And what should we do if the morning offers us, on the contrary, rain and bad weather?

There are those who, dissatisfied with the Salazar we had, say that we would need at least three Salazars. It is a thought typical of darkness, because the clear Sun of Antero does not esteem dictators, who are never heroes, they are characters who destroy nations and minds and contribute to nights so dark that one can barely read and write in this darkness.

But the number three has a strong meaning, it is the Holy Trinity, it is the “account that God made”, it is the Indo-European tripartite society (kings and priests to command, warriors to fight, producers to obey), that Dumézil describes. Would each of the Salazars be destined for each of these orders, guiding the kings, inspiring the priests, teaching war to warriors and making producers work harder? The nightmare is too strong for us to bear, even during these long nights that winter will offer us.

But the seasons are crazy and crazy with this climate change, which seems evident and scientifically proven, despite the fact that our world leaders, those who avoid vaccines, refuse to believe in the changes and in the scientists. Why believe in anything that doesn’t give us immediate income?

I like the changing seasons. When I lived in tropical countries, even though they were “blessed by God” and “naturally beautiful”, I missed springs and autumns and I don’t want climate change to steal these transitions in time from us. And I like it, I confess, I like the change of time. What are the equinoxes and solstices for, if not?

Diplomat and writer