Escape

Have you ever experienced a sudden moment of clarity, of epiphany, received a vision of blinding truth that pierces your mind and leaves this ephemeral shadow on your thoughts? It may happen when you’re sitting pensively by a lake, basking in the sun at the beach, or when you’re doing everyday chores like washing the dishes or walking to the washroom.

These revelations usually leave the recipient stunned and awed by the beauty of the truth they have just witnessed, and in turn cause the recipient to hasten to a pencil and paper lying nearby. They would then hastily scribble down a few disjointed phrases to describe what they have just witnessed and just when they have formed a clear idea of how to appropriately capture the mesmerizing scene, a discordant call from their mother or employer would awake them from the dream and wrench them back into reality. The little fledgling idea that had just formed would then lie abandoned on the desk, or perhaps fluttering futilely in the air for a moment or two, before fading out and reincarnating itself like a fiery phoenix in front of the next person.

I have experienced this numerous times and have experienced, upon my return to my little scrap of paper and pencil, a feeling of dismay that one feels when one has lost a valuable token from one of their favourite aunts. Then, I would gnash my teeth in frustration, berate myself for heeding the calls of the physical world, and promise that the next time the phoenix appears, I would grab onto its tale and fly out of the Chamber of Secrets, bringing revelatory truths to the masses.

However, unlike Harry Potter, who has great courage and self discipline (and also a magnetism for all things adventurous), I would continue on with my mundane life, forgetting my promise as I went along, and ultimately be stuck in this never-ending cycle in which that elusive little idea sparks but never catches fire.

This little writing, I suppose, is my reaction to the cycle. Although I have been conscious of my hypocritical actions, I have never felt ashamed nor motivated enough to break free from the chains of habit. The chains shackled me to my fellow prisoners who wander around day and night, hustling to and bustling fro, uncomprehending of their imprisonment. My fellow prisoners and I continued on with our lives, focusing on and believing that the big shadows cast onto the wall were all that the world was, not bothering (or perhaps not even realizing) to turn our heads and face the fire that cast the shadows.

In the instances when we inadvertently see the fiery phoenix, we are not curious nor determined enough to pursue it, and condemn ourselves to ignorance.

When I first sat down on my (very comfortable) couch to rebel against my habitual actions, I had little to no direction whatsoever in my ramblings. I merely wrote down whatever popped into my head, be that references to Harry Potter, John Keats, or Plato. However, I have found as I meandered through these paths of thought, that more and more light was building up within my mind and that the shadows on the wall faded away, leaving only a blank canvas.

The simple action of allowing our thoughts to wander (what is commonly referred to as daydreaming) can be a revelatory experience. When we devote enough time to this exercise, we can slowly turn our faces from the wall, unnoticed by our gaoler, Habit, and gaze into the awe-inspiring heart of the fire.

Then, if we are perceptive and sneaky enough, we may even notice the entrance (or exit) of the cave, from which streams and even purer and brighter light than the fire.

Now, as you turn towards this newfound source of light and hear the distant twitters of bird in a blue sky, gently shake your shackles off, tiptoe around your guard, and leave your shadow behind.

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Hello everyone! This chapter/post is mainly me rambling without the aid of a filter between my head and fingers (as in it's not editted and not very well thought out). I just got really annoyed at not being able to write anything because of the lack of ideas, and this just... popped out~

If it's a bit hard to understand...First, sorry about that, my mind's not always logical, and second, try checking out Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling, Ode to a Grecian Urn by John Keats, and Plato's Allegory of the Cave. Those were the things that I was blabbering about mainly and maybe (?) you'll get a better idea of what I was trying to say once you know the stuff I was referencing. 

Anyways, I'm sorry this isn't a fictional writing (I honestly have no idea what genre this fits under) and I really do wish I can be inspired to write something! I hope you're all enjoying your summers (or winter if you're down under) and I'll "talk" to you all next time!

In the meantime, feel free to comment, ask questions, and chat about whatever ^__^

(PS- the TED talk that I've linked to the side was something else I was thinking about while I was typing away)