Coordinated naps

A culture is defined by the norms of its people. As the people of a society change, its culture evolves. Sometimes for the better. Other times, not so much.

In my part of the world – Goa, India, the last decade has dealt us a culture shift like never before. It's had its benefits, but we've lost a lot as well. One particularly tragic victim has been a dearly held norm for generations – the afternoon nap.

As a child, I remember walking through Panjim in the afternoon. From 1PM to 4PM, the streets were empty. Shutters down, not a patrão in sight. They were all home, enjoying their own versions of the 'sussegad' life, which usually comprised of fish-curry-rice followed by a nap and then some tea. At 4PM, they'd be rolling up shutters again.

The system worked because it was the norm. Everybody did it collectively, so nobody suffered.

At some point though, things changed.

As people from other cultures started businesses in Goa, nap time lost its sacredness. Although only few migrant owned shops stayed open in the afternoon, customer expectations changed. Keeping your shop shut meant losing business to those that were open. And so, Goans adapted. We lost sleep over our competition.

But nobody won.

It reminded me of a passage from Meditations on Moloch by Slate Star Codex:

"From a god’s-eye-view, the best solution is world peace and no country having an army at all. From within the system, no country can unilaterally enforce that, so their best option is to keep on throwing their money into missiles that lie in silos unused."

For us Goans, there is no going back. The army must be maintained. Coordinated naps have been lost forever.