Every morning I wake up to the sound of drilling. Some new plaza, some new walls, some new things I’ll never walk into. Lahore is a city that seems like it’s always under construction. Whether it’s building a new road, tearing down a plaza or even replacing a whole ecosystem, are we really building something that’s actually worth keeping? Or is it something that’s going to be inevitably destroyed?
It seems like every new house, road, library or building comes with its enitable destruction. Is there something that could be destroyed as easily as it’s created? The answer to that question is simple–yes.
What we actually define as progress is–in my eyes–somewhat flawed, corrupted or even misnamed for a word far harsher. Development in Pakistan often just focuses on erasing history, communities, cultures and even roots (both literally and metaphorically).
I want the world, if possible, to shift to the idea of unbuilding. It isn’t a fancy word for destruction, urbanization or demolition–but it’s another word for reconnection with our roots. It’s returning to the land itself, remembering that our roots were always placed in the ground and not the sky.
Mud Houses are an example of unbuilding. I never define building Mud Houses as “constructing a Mud House”, but as lifting something that was already a part of the ground, environment and our culture.
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