Encyclopaedia of Pain. Chapter One: Mum´s the Word

“The writer and poet Pablo Fidalgo does not mention the most difficult cases of paedophilia, but mostly the psychological and physical violence that accompanied the teaching method. If a traumatic experience tends to often erase everything, forcing the body to conceal poorly healed wounds so that the mind doesn’t notice them, the very act of writing can help reconnect that broken bond. ‘The poetic writing which I arrive from, is precisely like that,’ comments Fidalgo. ‘It is tissue, the building of memory, it is a descent to the first memories, dreams, first sounds and smells.’ (…) The #Me Too initiative has given voice to an incredible number of rape and sexual abuse victims. Only later did we realise that even we could have been attacked. We thus go through the past anew, amazed and ashamed that we didn’t understand, didn’t speak or weren’t heard. Yet, change is persistently knocking on the door, despite the harsh stumbles of former Hollywood stars. So, what is left after grief? (…) If #Me Too contributed to the empowerment of many women, it also proved the fragility of all of us.”

(Público, www.publico.es, 10. 6. 2022)