For this class I got sick and therefore was given a slightly different assignment compared to others.
I had to pick one of the 'possible worlds' (slide 2-3) based on the intersection of two 'things' in the Everything manifesto and use the hypothetical questions related to each thing as prompts to write a short fiction story (500-1,000 words) about how everyday life can be like in Barcelona by 2053.
I chose Identity and Design as the 2 prompts for writing this story as I was always interested in exploring beyond the static binary mindsets as well as human-centred approach.
Gender-bending identities has been adapted by all locals in Barcelona now. And although the world is still divided into binary identities in many of its parts, Barcelona, among other
“Quirky Places”, as some traditionalists like to call it, has become a centre for exploration. The city has maintained its status as the Top tourist attraction throughout the century,
however it’s not attracting people to see Gaudi’s buildings any longer, as it did in the past long forgotten. People from all over the world drive their paths to Barcelona in order to
engage in a ritual of sorts. A ritual to unlearn and forget. A ritual to be reborn into a new species known as post-species, as there is no longer the need to divide and to separate.
Day 1: Ñoko just came back from the ritual, or came forward if you will, and is taking first steps into this new and exciting world through the lenses xi (pre-fix name everyone gets after
the ritual) never experienced before. First thing that struck xi was that the ever-present desire xi experienced before for mating, reproducing. How the act of sex has guided xi’s life and the constant sacrifices xi had to make for fulfilment of such desires took a completely different meaning now. The traditionalism that oftentimes came from the biological need for survival didn’t mean anything now since the binary roles of males and females no longer existed. There was no longer the biological need to put a spread the seed that xi felt before as a male. With this first steps into the world, Ñoko could finally enjoy a total peace with xi’s own body and mind.
Day 2: The next day brought even more surprises. Ñoko could not grasp why, just why, the post-species weren’t using the holocopters (rapid flight devices) for transportation which was,
and the whole world agreed, the fastest and most comfortable way of transportation that humans developed. In Barcelona, however, it was forr the first time in 10 years that xi had to walk more than 1km to reach his destination. Then it struck him, you can actually see thee birds flying in the sky. It was such a revelation, since long ago scientists already developed a network of closed natural habitat that allowed birds to live separately and in peace with other ‘lesser species that humans need’, as was universally approved, and to reproduce at much better rate to prevent any kinds of extinction possibilities. Turns out that birds are no longer perceived as birds as this provokes a certain habit in human mind increasing the separation between all living world. Instead, post-species experience all living things on the same level, feeling their ways of working, living, communicating, their needs and struggles, their involvement in a bigger system such as planet earth. Ñoko could clearly distinguish the innate
workings of mycelium under xi’s feet, communicating and warning other living beings about the potential change, am unexpected danger. And it wasn’t only communicating with the soil, or the trees, it was communicating with Ñoko. Mycelium told xi about the increasing amount of toxins in the area where xi was standing. It told xi to search for help (xi still hasn’t undergone basic training about “first-aid”).
That was the end of the second day, as the sun came up from the horizon.
