I'm reading Paulo Coelho's, "Veronika Decides To Die." Like many of his books, quotes of inspiration come to mind. It's about the social ties between 'madness' and what majority of the world perceive as 'normal.'
There's a chapter in the book in which one of the clinically insane characters comes to see Dr. Igor, the doctor who manages the asylum known as "Vilette." Her question is plain and simple..."Is she cured from insanity?" He goes into many stories of how things were invented in society, with no explanation to why they are of the norm or socially accepted now. Reading these following excerpts opened my eyes to a whole new perspective on life in this world and the confidence to accept my existence for who I am, whole-heartedly:
(This excerpt is after Dr. Igor enlists the comparisons and relations of prominent inventions, that we barely take notice of in our everyday lives, being considered the 'norm.')
"...Each human being is unique, each with their own qualities, instincts, forms of pleasure and desire for adventure. However, society always imposes on us a collective way of behaving, and people never stop to wonder why they should behave like that. They just accept it...Have you ever met anyone in your entire life who asked why the hands of a clock should go in one particular direction and not in the other?
If someone were to ask, the response they got would probably be: "You're mad." If they persisted, people would try to come up with a reason, but they'd soon change the subject, because there isn't a reason...
You're someone who is different, but who wants to be the same as everyone else. And that, in my view, is a serious illness.
...If you force yourself to be the same as everyone else: it causes neuroses, psychoses, and paranoia. It's a distortion of nature, it goes against God's law, for in all the world's woods and forests, He did not create a single leaf the same as another. But you think it's mad to be different."
There is so much content in this book that I wish to share. If you want to know what I'm seeing in this book...a revelation, an epiphany, if that's what you want to call it, then READ IT!
What an AWEsome way to start this upcoming year...
