What do we actually need? Well, this song, and specifically Soja, have an idea of what…
And thanks to one of my students, Marcela who translated Falcão’s verse so beautifully and poetically from Portuguese, this is what Falcão thinks we do…
Look for your dreams, your intentions,
Open your mind for your heart,Wake the transformation of hundreds to millions,
Because, if we’re together, we’re nations.
If he’ll be in a dream and me as well,
I picture always doing the best for someone,
Like in this life things we don’t control.
Sleep at night with a murderer outside,
Now, look into his nightmares,
It still won’t be your worst nightmares.
There are mixes, whites and blacks,
Gringo’s, blacks, gringo’s, blacks.Look at what you’re obligated to need,
Your chance in Brazil is for somebody to conquer you,
somebody to conquer you.Dreams and intentions,
Hundreds into millions,
Together we’re nations,
Millions,
As well,
Better for everyone.
Which bears some resemblance to what the octopods in The Arrival say in their own language…
It’s possible that because humanity has never faced a serious threat from any other biological force before (or at least not for a long time) … Oh, other than bacteria and Microbiomes… the one thing that may unite us, and make us see that all this division into religions, countries, states, fans of Manchester City vs fans of Manchester United, will be the time where we need to unite against a serious existential threat to humanity. It may be the time where we realise, wow, you’re human, sunnis realise that shiites are human, Manchester City fans realise United fans are human, and we actually unite as humans.