Story #13 Pure Happiness

Photo: Marcin Satie Novak

Really big moments in life begin very quietly. There is no big bang, no surprise, no excitement. There are only small waves, very gentle and soft, that grow slowly and are not noticed until they reach the point when they are ready to present their greatness and spread their beauty. I have experienced this phenomenon only three times in my life but I will never forget it.

Late afternoon, 11 September 2014, Brussels

Aga came over to my place to change for the opening. Nicely dressed in high heals we first went to a nearby shop to collect the last items needed for the opening, namely vodka bottles and salty sticks. The paradox situation of two nicely dressed girls on the street carrying boxes full of vodka bottles made us laugh. Then we went straight to the Lodzkie House, where the opening was taking place, and assisted in the last of the preparations.

There was nothing in the air yet, at least nothing to give us an inkling of what transpired later. Upon reflection I think this was due to a lack of experience in preparing for openings and the little expectations we had because of this.

Photo: Marcin Satie Novak

At the very first opening guests started slowly arriving, one by one or in little groups. I only noticed them really when the room was completely full. And that was the moment of the first bigger wave. I was standing at the end of the garden watching the crowd of people and I could not believe that we had made it. I could not believe that all these people had come to see our work. It hit me very deeply. All of a sudden there was this special feeling around me - very light and full of happiness. It was like a fog surrounding me, touching me gently and smiling to me.

Then I saw Aga. She was extremely excited. Her eyes were glowing like two big light bulbs. Her hair seemed to be more red then usual and this very special smile that I rarely see on her face seemed to be transfixed there and remained there for the rest of the evening. You could see she was incredibly happy. She was here but at the same time in another space.

Then I looked around again at all the people present and I realized that it was thanks to them that I could experience this incredible moment. It was thanks to them that something bigger than I could possibly have imagined welcomed me on that day. Even now, when I am writing this, I can still feel it. This feeling of pure happiness stayed with me for the next couple of days. I was riding on a very high wave that was a lot better then any possible drags available to deliver a 'real' pleasure. I will never forget this feeling. And I hope that everyone experiences this feeling at least once in their life. Because it's only thanks to these unique moments can we still believe that life has the potential to be really special and not just full of shit.

Written by Sabina Stachnik

More crazy stuff on:
My Art in the Box story

http://art-in-the-box.be