<aside>
<aside>
Do not isolate
There is prey
Curiously waiting watch
-安天美
</aside>
Have you noticed how the world conspires to separate us? How the bright screens in our palms promise connection while building walls between us? The command "Do not isolate" arrives not as suggestion but as survival instruction. It echoes with the wisdom of ancestors who understood that alone, we become easy targets in a world of hunters. The first humans gathered around fires not just for warmth but for the protection that only eyes watching in all directions could provide.
Community offers a mantle of awareness no individual can maintain alone. When we join our perceptions with others, blind spots disappear. What one misses, another notices. The whispered warning, the subtle nod, the gentle redirection. These small acts of collective awareness have saved countless lives across generations. The poem speaks this ancient truth: alone, we are vulnerable; together, we create a circle no predator easily breaches.
For young adults navigating today's fractured landscapes, this wisdom feels especially urgent. Between the competing demands of work, study, and digital life, isolation creeps in disguised as independence or self-reliance. True connection requires more effort than casual exchange. It demands showing up with full presence, sharing authentic vulnerabilities, and committing to mutual protection.
"There is prey" lands with the quiet force of a hand suddenly gripping your shoulder. Just three words that transform everything, revealing the world not as neutral ground but as territory where some hunt and others are hunted. This truth exists whether we acknowledge it or not. Predatory systems surround us. Some obvious with bared teeth, others beautifully camouflaged as opportunity, convenience, or care.
These hunters take many forms. The corporation that extracts labour while offering barely enough to survive. The charismatic figure whose attention feels like sunlight until suddenly it burns. The social structures designed to separate us from our power, our resources, our very sense of self. Even our own thoughts can become predators, prowling through our minds with messages that we are never enough, never safe, never worthy of protection.
Young people inherit worlds they did not create but must navigate nonetheless. Recognising predatory patterns early creates possibility for both defense and transformation. The ability to name a system as exploitative is the first step toward building alternatives. This knowledge serves not to instill fear but to awaken clarity. The kind that knows which hands extend in genuine offering and which conceal claws.
The final line reveals the most chilling aspect of danger: "Curiously waiting watch". This isn't random chance or momentary threat. These forces observe with calculating patience, studying patterns and routines with clinical interest. They note when guards drop, when attention wavers, when isolation creates perfect vulnerability. Like the lion monitoring the herd for signs of weakness, they watch for the precise moment to strike.
This watchfulness carries an unsettling intelligence. It studies without emotion, assessing with cold efficiency where resistance might be weakest. Sometimes the hunters are external like systems and individuals who benefit from exploitation. Other times, they emerge from within as self-doubt, harmful patterns, or beliefs that convince us to step away from protective community into dangerous isolation.
Understanding this predatory patience transforms how we approach protection. The knowledge that we are being studied helps us develop more consistent awareness. Like the antelope at the watering hole who never completely abandons vigilance even in moments of necessary vulnerability, we learn to maintain connections and awareness as continuous commitment.
When practiced together, this awareness becomes an unbreakable network of protection. Stories shared around dinner tables carry warnings disguised as casual observation. "I noticed something strange about that situation..." becomes vital intelligence. Communities with open communication patterns develop collective understanding about how and when threats typically approach, strengthening everyone's ability to recognise danger before it strikes.
The strongest protection comes through diversity of perspective and experience. Young eyes often catch emerging threats that older generations might miss, while experienced members recognise recurring patterns from encounters past. Each vantage point contributes crucial pieces to a complete understanding. The community that values all perspectives creates the most comprehensive shield.
This knowledge flows between generations like water down a mountainside. Grandmothers whisper warnings in proverbs and folktales. Uncles share stories that seem merely entertaining until their protective lessons suddenly activate years later. Friends exchange observations in late-night conversations that feel like gossip but function as crucial intelligence sharing. All these exchanges weave invisible nets of safety around community members.
Begin by noticing your own tendencies toward isolation, especially during difficulty when protection is most needed. See how trouble convinces you to step away from others, to handle things alone, to disappear from the very connections that might save you. Notice without judgment, then gently move back toward community.
Practice honest assessment of potential dangers without surrendering to fear. Train your attention to recognise patterns of predatory behaviour, the too-good-to-be-true opportunity, the love that demands isolation from friends, the system that requires sacrificing your wellbeing. Develop the capacity to see clearly without becoming paralysed by what you observe.
Extend your awareness beyond personal safety to community care. Watch not only for yourself but for those with less power, less visibility, less protection. Share information that might shield others from harm. Create cultures where speaking about potential dangers becomes not pessimism but an act of love. In this practice, protection transforms from self-preservation to sacred obligation.
</aside>
<aside> <img src="/icons/backward_blue.svg" alt="/icons/backward_blue.svg" width="40px" /> Shape of You
</aside>
<aside> <img src="/icons/forward_blue.svg" alt="/icons/forward_blue.svg" width="40px" /> Always Serving
</aside>