A SHORT STORY “A powerful wizard, who wanted to destroy an entire kingdom, placed a magic potion in the well from which all the inhabitants drank. Whoever drank that water would go mad. “The following morning, the whole population drank from the well and they all went mad, apart from the king and his family, who had a well set aside for them alone, which the magician had not managed to poison. The king was worried and tried to control the population by issuing a series of edicts governing security and public health. The policemen and the inspectors, however, had also drunk the poisoned water, and they thought the king’s decisions were absurd and resolved to take no notice of them. “When the inhabitants of the kingdom heard these decrees, they became convinced that the king had gone mad and was now giving nonsensical orders. They marched on the castle and called for his abdication. “In despair the king prepared to step down from the throne, but the queen stopped him, saying: ‘Let us go and drink from the communal well. Then we will be the same as them.’ “And that was what they did: The king and the queen drank the water of madness and immediately began talking nonsense. Their subjects repented at once; now that the king was displaying such wisdom, why not allow him to continue ruling the country? “The country continued to live in peace, although its inhabitants behaved very differently from those of its neighbors. And the king was able to govern until the end of his days.” QUOTABLE
SUMMARY
Veronika is a beautiful young woman from Ljubljana, Slovenia who appears to have the perfect life, but nevertheless decides to commit suicide by ingesting too many sleeping pills. While she waits to die, she decides to read a magazine. After seeing an article in the magazine which wittily asks "Where is Slovenia?," she decides to write a letter to the press justifying her suicide, the idea being to make the press believe that she has killed herself because people don't even know where Slovenia is. Her plan fails and she wakes up in Villete, a mental hospital in Slovenia, where she is told she has only a few days to live. Her presence there affects all of the mental hospital's patients, especially Zedka, who has clinical depression; Mari, who suffers from panic attacks; and Eduard, who has schizophrenia, and with whom Veronika falls in love. During her internment in Villete she realises that she has nothing to lose and can therefore do what she wants, say what she wants and be who she wants without having to worry about what others think of her; as a mental patient, she is unlikely to be criticized. Because of this newfound freedom Veronika experiences all the things she never allowed herself to experience, including hatred and love. In the meantime, Villete's head psychiatrist, Dr. Igor, attempts a fascinating but provocative experiment: can you "shock" someone into wanting to live by convincing her that death is imminent? Like a doctor applying defibrillatorpaddles to a heart attack victim, Dr. Igor's "prognosis" jump-starts Veronika's new appreciation of the world around her. (Source: Wikipedia) PERSONAL THOUGHTS “What does it mean to be crazy?” For me,insanity is a combination of extreme or strong feelings that sometimes our body cannot take it in one instant and we need an outlet to let it flow. I think if I go around asking for answers,they'll think I'm either crazy or stupid.Honestly,It's hard to tell the difference between this two because it always depends on how they are used.More likely today, people use the word crazy as a joke or just an expression.One can say your crazy if you said or did something funny.Or one can easily say,your crazy if they can't understand you.Or you're crazy if you are obsessed to something else.Or if you laugh too much or cry too hard.People will think you are crazy.If I intend to be crazy,does it mean I'm really crazy? Maybe Zedka was right.If you do something different,then people think that you're crazy. I honestly do not understand the borderline of when a person is sane or insane.But one thing I can relate with in this story is suicidal attempts due to depression,anger ,fear ,boredom and uncertainty.I had suicidal attempts twice in my life.First attempt was when I was in High School due to extreme suffering emotionally & financially.I hated my family that time specially my mother.And financial issues in school piled up that got me so depressed that I wanted to kill myself.I'm also socially misfit.I got no group of friends and I hated that feeling.But There's one person from the city that made me look at the brighter side of life and gave me reason to continue living. My second attempt was in College.Life was harder in the city and things got really mixed up.I cannot find any support or love from my parents.This time,some people showed me affection and care but I feel depressed of repeated patterns everyday.Like the cycle is unbreakable.I'm not broke this time but I got so bored that I even beg God to let me die in my sleep.I have no reason to live as I feel I'm so alone in this world.No one needs me.Not even my family. Then I met my Zedka too.Though she's not depressed like me,she's the exact opposite of me.The bubbly and happy go lucky woman who gave me reasons to figure out what made her so happy and helpful to me.Then she introduced me to some of her friends.Then she brought me into a new environment.New people,new routine.New reason to live.Then I realized,I might have made everything in my life a big deal when they are not in the first place.Then I started to understand that dwelling on those feelings is what probably will get me killed.From that day forward,whenever I feel too sad or too bored or too grumpy.I take a break from work.Go somewhere.Treat myself and let those feelings leave me before I go with my usual routine.Work.Home.Work. Today,when I tell people that I've thought of suicide twice,they give me that confused and "are you crazy" type of look.When I try to explain what I feel and what made me think of commiting suicide,I get those gloomy faces.Some look like they wanted to shake me hard perhaps to wake me up or some would give me long sermon that I don't need at that time.And I feel worse even opening up because no one can understand me. Maybe we are indeed crazy in our own ways.Crazy is not a word anymore that is use in mental institutions but it can also be a level of being different and free spirited.Well,that's the reason why Veronika suddenly appreciated life when she wanted to end it.Since she's got nothing to loose and people think she's crazy any way,she did everything she wanted to do.To love,to play the piano.To masturbate in front of the man she fell in love with.She express her opinions freely without having to fear of what other people would say.Or if a person thinks too much,most would fear her and think of her as crazy.Lots of the so called "insane" in my home town where once known for being extremely intelligent.And maybe they were so bored as there's nothing logical to look forward anymore and so they've gone crazy as my folks would sometimes tell. But I want to believe that all people has a bit of craziness .We are unique from each other and so there are things that we do or have that others might find it weird,bizzare as form of craziness.We all have our level of craziness.There are people who are crazy about fashion that when they didn't look good on what they wear,they tend to be too grumpy about it.There were also some who are crazy about colors or collections or movies or to celebrities. And I think,suicidal attempts are sometimes extreme feelings that needed to flow outside so the person can breath again.When you come across someone who attempted suicide,the least thing they need is your sermon.Or your over reaction or panic or fear in your face.All they need is just to talk about what they feel.Or sometimes,it's boredom.All they need is to find reason to live or break that routine.To come out of that cycle.I admit I'm one of those who are prone to depression or suicide but I find my own cure.I guess,in the end the only person who can help yourself is yourself.A doctor cannot diagnose a sickness without probing what you feel.A police cannot just imprison someone unless they are interrogated.A person who is insane cannot be understood by those who were always sane.I bet one can also find a personal cure to his own insanity.And one of the cure to my insanity is to do something different or atleast be different from time to time. So tell me again,what does it mean to be crazy?
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