{"id":19837,"date":"2024-06-20T13:54:46","date_gmt":"2024-06-20T03:54:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/?post_type=article&p=19837"},"modified":"2024-06-21T11:35:13","modified_gmt":"2024-06-21T01:35:13","slug":"hope-in-pompeii","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/article\/hope-in-pompeii\/","title":{"rendered":"Hope in Pompeii"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Reflections on Bastille in History and the Present<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

C. N. Vujanovic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u2018AND THE WALLS KEPT TUMBLING DOWN IN THE CITY THAT WE LOVED\u2019.<\/em><\/strong> Time Capsule<\/em> on Spotify is undoubtedly a great way to spend a rainy Saturday. When you hear that song <\/em>you\u2019ve always listened to, it transposes a sense of nostalgia into the dreariness of the day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For me, Spotify recently reminded me of Bastille\u2019s Pompeii<\/em> and I felt the exact feeling I have just described: nostalgia, cheerfulness, and reflectiveness. Yet, in this reflection I was reminded of the impact that the past has on the present. Pompeii<\/em> is not just the cool name of a song, but it was an ancient city on the Italian Coast that was draped in the warm blanket of a volcano in 79 AD. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this context those lyrics I mentioned just before start to make a bit more sense. \u2018And the walls kept tumbling down in the city that we loved\u2019; through a volcanic eruption a city was reduced to nothing more than rubble. Yet by the same token, mixing the cheerful tone of the song with lyrics like, \u2018Great clouds roll over the hill bringing darkness from above\u2019, is slightly paralysing. On the one hand, I want to feel happy when I am listening to the song; however, the subject matter is pure darkness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, the chorus to the song, \u2018How am I going to be an optimist about this?\u2019 references the tragic death of tens of thousands. Although, in the modern day, we are not under the imminent threat of a warm and suffocating blanket, the chorus\u2019 question is highly relatable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we are at our lowest, we ask ourselves: \u2018How am I going to be an optimist about this?\u2019 It is a question that pierces through the mist of aeons deeply resonating with us. While The Chainsmokers<\/em> (the artists) explain that the song is based on the conversation of two individuals who have been encased in molten lava for decades, the final question asked offers a solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photo from Pompeii of individuals encased by the lava. Source: Google.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That, \u2018If you close your eyes \/ Does it almost feel like nothing\u2019s changed at all?\u2019 On that dreary Saturday when I heard this song, it invited me to sit in the silence of the rain and reflect on how we cope with life\u2019s upheavals. The line invites us to find solace in the midst of the storm of life, suggesting that closing your eyes, looking inwards, taking a deep breath, and then opening your eyes can help you realise that perspective is all we need to see that the world really has not changed all that much. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A dreary day in Sydney. Source: Google.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ancient themes that I hear every time I listen to this ballad show me that yesterday, today, and tomorrow are the same. We are still grappling with the same problems and questions \u2013 of life and love and loss. As a Christian, I see this mix of Classical history and modern music as a reminder of the timeless nature of our human experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether it is a sunny or sullen Saturday, I can sit, considering, \u2018How am I going to be an optimist about this?\u2019 and be reminded of the value of placing my hope in life outside of this world. I realise that this may not apply to everyone, but I think it is a crucial question to ask yourself.  When \u2018you close your eyes\u2019, when \u2018the walls keep tumbling down in the city that you love\u2019, and when \u2018great clouds roll over the hill bringing darkness from above\u2019, where do you find your hope?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

C. N. Vujanovic<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":19838,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","article_category":[10],"article_tag":[],"class_list":["post-19837","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","article_category-student-journalism"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article\/19837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19837"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19838"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"article_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_category?post=19837"},{"taxonomy":"article_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thebuzz.net.au\/shore-weekly-record\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_tag?post=19837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}