Dispatches from the Fury Road: Closing.

Everything’s gotta go!

That’s the feeling I come across when I wander the streets. In one day I walked past two cafes that closed, a restaurant that was suddenly derelict, and a grocery store that no longer existed. I had walked that exact route three days before, and all three venues appeared to be very much alive. This is the problem with businesses. Their facades can suggest that everything is ticking along nicely while the insides are rotting to the core.

I can’t walk past any closed venue without feeling a twinge of sadness. It can’t help but think of all the hopes and dreams that have dissipated along with the decision. Regardless of the whys and wherefores of each individual story, at some point they were just an idea that floated about in an individual’s head before they decided to manifest that thought into reality. It takes a lot to chase a dream, and it can be even harder to let go.

There’s a pervasive melancholy in the air for the majority of people. It isn’t just businesses closing that reminds me of this. The dream of owning a nice home. The goal of ridding oneself of debt. The job security that is always just beyond reach. Meanwhile social media is full of the rich and the beautiful, telling us we can have it all, that all you have to do is believe in yourself, and everything will be okay. If you have all the time in the world, you too can have a six-pack. If you’re not constantly on the run, you too can cook this low calorie diet. If you’re flushed with cash, you too can have the surgery that will give you those cheekbones you long desired. It’s all there for the taking, you just have to believe.

I don’t understand the war between the generations. It’s a narrative sold to us by those in power who never want us to realise the truth. They want Gen Z vs the Boomers because that’s a story that can be controlled. The real battle is between the rich and the rest of society. It’s Rich Gen Z vs the rest of Gen Z. It’s cashed up Boomers vs the real Boomers. Don’t allow yourself to fall into simple dismissive decisions about a person when you notice their age. You’re possibly denying yourself an ally in the fight for survival.

Nothing lasts forever. I get that. The bittersweet beauty of the passing of time is that everything ends. It’s just a bummer to see so many places, so many stories, so many hopes coming to an end at once. Who knows how long I have? It’s a question I’ve asked myself more than once this year. For now the goal is to keep on dreaming, eyes scrunched together, hoping that I don’t wake up anytime soon.

Justin Hamilton

Surry Hills

15th of July, 2024