Curious to know what other people who have spent the same number of days on Earth as him have achieved, English writer Richard Avis is traveling around the world looking for individuals who share his birthday.
Were you born on December 1st, 1974? Than you just might be on Richard Avis’ to-visit list. The oddball English writer has embarked on a journey to meet 40 of his “time twins” in different locations around the world and put his experiences down on paper for his new book. “I was not alone in being born on that day. Families across the world celebrated their new additions on that day 38 years ago,” Richard writes on his website. “But what kinds of lives have these people lived? With the same length of time on this planet as me, what have they achieved? What have been their greatest achievements; and what are their burning ambitions? Do they see themselves as young, middle aged or old? Have they achieved their defining moment, or is that still to come? Are they married with children, or single, backpacking round the world? Are they successful – and how is this judged? How have their lives been affected by the accident of geography that led them to be born where they were? Is our age a defining similarity, or does the concept of age change from country to country?” These are the questions he’s trying to find answers to through his unique Time Twins project.
Photo: Richard Davis
So far, Richard’s curiosity has taken him to meet nine different people who share his birthday, including a bodybuilding champion in Holland, an actor in New York City, the mayor of an Italian town affected by earthquakes, an Olympian in Norway and a fellow writer in Ireland. In the coming months, he plans on traveling to Austria, Thailand, Russia, Indonesia, Croatia, Morocco, Slovenia and Brunei to meet more special people born on December 1st, 1974.
Photo: Richard Davis
According to Richard, “the project, and the book we’re producing, is examining the similarities and differences of the lives of people born around the world on the same day as us; their perceptions of age and success; how the place of their birth determines these things and how people with the same length of time on the Earth have such different lives. It also examines the events that have shaped their lives, the issues that they care about and their hopes and concerns for the future, both on a personal and political level. The book will, ultimately be a celebration of cultural diversity and of human achievement in all its forms.”
Source: Richard Avis
If you share the same birth date as Richard, or know someone who does, you can contact him at this email address: [email protected]
