The Norwegian "PostSecret" has arrived!
"When people I say I am pretty, I really just want to say, "Thanks, I know." One of the many secrets from Norske Hemmeligheter.
Do you have a secret? Now Norwegians can reveal their deepest secrets online.
Perhaps you have heard of the blog “Post Secret” in which one can send a postcard with a secret written on one side to a website. Post Secret has inspired thousands of people to anonymously share their deepest secrets on the web.
Now Norwegians can do the same. In the book “Norwegian Secrets” you can read Norwegians’ innermost secrets, each illustrated as a separate work of art in the collage technique.
The authors of the book have obtained all of the secrets on their website. Norwegians send their secrets here every day. It has revealed a lot of hidden feelings, and the desire to say things most people just cannot say.
“At one point, after an online article that was written about us, a secret was coming in once per second. It was very inspiring,” says illustrator and author, Cathy Finstad.
There is something fascinating about secrets. Something you would never tell anybody out loud, but would like to read about. The idea for the site comes from an art book Cathrine Finstad bought in the U.S., and she found it so exciting that she decided to create her own twist to reveal Norwegian secrets.
“So far we have received some 15,000 secrets, they are coming in every day,” she told NRK.
One might think that some rather inappropriate things could be revealed amidst all these secrets, but Finstad says that so far hasn’t happened.
“Nothing has come in that we have reacted negatively to. We look at this with a completely open mind, and we do not censor. This will be an open forum where everyone can share their secrets.”
Finstad reveals that she has developed a more open mind after working with all these secrets.
“Of course! There are so many strange things that people hide. In one confession, the submitter said that she did not dare to order a black coffee if there was a black person behind the counter. It was a thought that had never occurred to me before, while a friend of mine from another part of the country felt the same. Perhaps secrets are sometimes dependent on place as well?”
Finstad believes the website can serve as therapy for those who have long borne a secret. Having entrusted their secret anonymously they feel relieved of a burden.
“There are many who tell what they are thinking of, but also that they have nobody they can tell. One wrote and said that she saw her secret online, and felt good.
Finstad and co-author Elise Ostby have laughed a lot while writing this book.
“There are still things that surprise us. There seems to be an inexhaustible universe of secrets. It is never empty. Fortunately.”
Psychologist Frode Thuen thinks everyone has a secret, and believes that it’s okay.
“I do not think age has any significance. And I think that some secrets should be had. You do not tell everything to everyone, secrets are part of life, it should be that way. There are many reasons why we have secrets.”
He believes that is when the secret is big, heavy and painful, it is important that you share it with others.
“Secrets that are painful to bear can reduce the quality of life. Then it is important to share it with someone who can maintain, manage, and possibly help you further,” he said.
Thuen thinks such a project may have therapeutic benefits.
“One can not exclude that to reveal their secrets anonymous might be a first step toward getting help. However, one should be careful not to give books and websites too much importance. This is an expression of “Facebook culture,” part of our time and culture, and people’s need to share a part of themselves with others. It does not have a greater meaning than that,” believes Thuen.
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