Letter to Aalst

Elien and Leontien read a letter during the opening weekend of NW Aalst. After many discussions in Aalst, they organised their thoughts and made ten proposals. 

The letter begins with 'Hello residents of Aalst, Erembodegem, Gijzegem, Hofstade, Baardegem, Herdersem, Meldert, Moorsele, Nieuwerkerke and others who may or may not be here by chance. It then continues with a collection of words that come to mind, concerns that exist and decay that sometimes also stimulates the imagination.

A short excerpt from the letter: 

Proposal 4: Calling on a stone

We were in Hofstade and came across the call stone. I don't know if you are familiar with call stones. But it was completely unknown to me, perhaps I am too young. Actually, it is quite obvious that there were call stones in every village. Because there were times when there was no internet, no newspapers, when most people couldn't read. And that's why those big tall stones, usually located near a church, were so useful. They were used to communicate messages to the population. This was done by a constable, a town crier, a bell ringer or a municipal messenger, usually on Sundays after mass. 

The modern-day equivalent of the town crier's stone is perhaps the Facebook group 'Aalst!', Aalst exclamation mark. Where often the loudest voices get the most attention, even though they are actually just typing away alone and silently on a keyboard. 

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I think of 'Shy Radicals', a book by Hamja Ahsan, a book that makes a plea to give introverts power instead of loud shouters.

So, how could we bring a calling stone for the silent callers to life? A platform for the shy? A stage for the whisperers? 

Or a voice for boroughs that are not really heard by the city? A voice for every village to communicate all their questions, concerns and demands to the centre?