What lasting impression do we leave behind, even after our products are gone?

Sample narrative fragment

An ethnographic speculation—used to test the emotional logic of a new system.

“We were on our way back from the supermarket.

Saturday morning, bags full, heads down.

My daughter tugged my sleeve—she’d spotted music coming from the plaza near our tram stop.

There was a small basketball court set up, cones, skipping ropes, a few folding benches. A DJ playing low-key old-school hip-hop. Not a big event. Just a handful of kids running around, someone shouting encouragement, a few parents sipping coffee from thermos mugs.

One of the coaches walked over and asked if my daughter wanted to try.

She hesitated. Said she didn’t know how to play.

He said, “There is nothing you can do wrong. Let me show you.”

And she joined.

That was four weeks ago.

Now, every Saturday, she asks if we can swing by—“just to see if they’re there.”

Sometimes it’s basketball. Other times it’s skipping, running games, dance-offs with no winners.

It’s messy. And it works.

I signed up for updates with a QR code on a poster stuck to a lamppost. It led to a simple page—next week’s times, what to bring (water, old shoes, a hoodie if it rains).

Nothing flashy. But it felt made for us.

In the app, I found out they also offer indoor sessions at the community gym down the road.

We even got a message asking if we wanted to borrow some gear—trainers, skipping ropes, basketballs—to use at home during the week. My daughter thought it was magic.

What’s wild is, I’ve started joining in.

I haven’t moved like this in years. No mirrors. No goals. Just… play.

I met a few other parents. One of them’s a physiotherapist who offered to run a warm-up session.

Another's trying to set up a weekly walking group for people who “don’t run but still want to breathe.”

They asked if I wanted to host one too.

No pressure. Just pick a time, show up, invite others. They would help me set everything up.

A guy from the project said, “We don’t need instructors. We need neighbours.”

It’s strange. All this from a few cones and a speaker in a tired public square.

But it feels like something’s evolving. Like we’re learning how to move together again.”