Perspective is everything. Ionesco wrote this play, Rhinoceros. It shows a village of people mutating into rhinos. The first person to mutate is cast out as a freak. Eventually, everyone mutates but one person who remains human. He is then cast out as a freak. Perspective is indeed everything.
I started out as a child who had no opinions. What others told me was the truth for me. That person’s reality was mine. Perspective too was adopted. It is shocking how much rot can be fed to one so impressionable. Anyone and everyone had a piece of advice, with ‘experience’ backing it. And it’s tragic how much of an impression all that makes.
Luckily, identity asserted itself. My experiences and learning saved me from becoming a collection of assorted ‘that’s what they say’ and ‘what will they think’. Some people I met contributed to the crucible of self-purging, the act of becoming.
I went through life trying to adhere to these scathing directives and an internal conscience that was more intellectual than moral. It hasn’t been easy. My significant others unfortunately adhere to a different set of principles. ‘They’ play a big part in the lives of all those I love and care about.
There are times I wake up gasping, feeling like a newborn Neo, helpless and atrophied, cast out from an unnatural, somnolent womb, surrounded by millions of watching eyes. But the Nebuchadnezzar is not waiting to rescue me. And I cannot escape the 100 regenerating Smiths by flying away to Neverland. Redemption is not that simple. It will need the painstaking effort Andy put in at Shawshank, scratching away dirt by the pocketful, behind a blowup of Rita Hayworth, digging his way out at the end of 20 long years.
There have been crucial times in life when I have had to brace myself to take that all-important step that was true to me and no one else. I have faltered, I have tripped, I have chickened out. But I have also persevered. And I have suffered for my insolence. I have been punished for acting on my beliefs. And now, once again, such a decision lies before me; perhaps my biggest yet. This entry is my declaration of intent before that step.
I might be a rhinoceros or a human, but I am no freak; even if that’s what they say. And when I act, what they think is the last thing on my mind. I will be true to the person I am and what I believe in. And there are no conditions therein. As the band Five for Fighting said in their song Superman… ‘It’s not easy to be me.’ But at the end of the day, there’s no one else I’d rather be!
Cogito Ergo Finito
I started out as a child who had no opinions. What others told me was the truth for me. That person’s reality was mine. Perspective too was adopted. It is shocking how much rot can be fed to one so impressionable. Anyone and everyone had a piece of advice, with ‘experience’ backing it. And it’s tragic how much of an impression all that makes.
Luckily, identity asserted itself. My experiences and learning saved me from becoming a collection of assorted ‘that’s what they say’ and ‘what will they think’. Some people I met contributed to the crucible of self-purging, the act of becoming.
I went through life trying to adhere to these scathing directives and an internal conscience that was more intellectual than moral. It hasn’t been easy. My significant others unfortunately adhere to a different set of principles. ‘They’ play a big part in the lives of all those I love and care about.
There are times I wake up gasping, feeling like a newborn Neo, helpless and atrophied, cast out from an unnatural, somnolent womb, surrounded by millions of watching eyes. But the Nebuchadnezzar is not waiting to rescue me. And I cannot escape the 100 regenerating Smiths by flying away to Neverland. Redemption is not that simple. It will need the painstaking effort Andy put in at Shawshank, scratching away dirt by the pocketful, behind a blowup of Rita Hayworth, digging his way out at the end of 20 long years.
There have been crucial times in life when I have had to brace myself to take that all-important step that was true to me and no one else. I have faltered, I have tripped, I have chickened out. But I have also persevered. And I have suffered for my insolence. I have been punished for acting on my beliefs. And now, once again, such a decision lies before me; perhaps my biggest yet. This entry is my declaration of intent before that step.
I might be a rhinoceros or a human, but I am no freak; even if that’s what they say. And when I act, what they think is the last thing on my mind. I will be true to the person I am and what I believe in. And there are no conditions therein. As the band Five for Fighting said in their song Superman… ‘It’s not easy to be me.’ But at the end of the day, there’s no one else I’d rather be!
Cogito Ergo Finito
2 comments:
You say that, you were like a clay that everyone that came in ur touch tried to shape their way. but now u have sought ur self... then why you still substantiate your thoughts by giving instances from someone else's plays and movies and songs. Start your own, be on your own. Godspeed.
It is only the fortunate few who pursue their dreams against all odds. Goodluck! Enjoy the journey.
Post a Comment