The Invisible Grasp of the Collective

Dedicated to the "unexplainable" repetitive patterns that run our lives despite our better knowing, and the kinds of things we can't Google our way out of.

Images by Andrew Seaman and Bruno Figueiredo on Unsplash

April 26, 2025 | Zurich, Switzerland

You probably know the story of Romeo and Juliet. As the story goes, their families, the Capulets and the Montagues, had been locked in a bitter feud for generations. The original cause was probably long forgotten, but the suffering, the deaths, the accumulated grief kept deepening the fight.

Similarly, we often don’t realize how entangled we are in our own choices and beliefs, caught in silent loyalties to our own "Capulets and Montagues." In most cases, it’s not about killing each other literally, but just as bad, we take the full living out of our lives. Without noticing, we fear betraying our tribe. We stay loyal to family members who deserved a better fate, or to those who were excluded for reasons we hardly understand. We unconsciously compensate for old injustices, carrying emotions, burdens and destinies that were never ours to bear.

Does any of this sound familiar?

I don’t know about you, …