Mental Stillness

 

If an insane person yells in an empty forest, does he reply to the echoes as if it were someone else? Do we as a saner, wiser collective? These, like all things involving the truly mad, are good questions worth considering. If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results, what do we make of slot machine enthusiasts, horrible strikeout-prone ballplayers, unfunny comedians in search of the one audience that “gets” it? 

When a mental patient comes to you saying they’ve got a “better way to do your taxes,” do you send H&R Block packing and hand over your forms, no questions asked? Some would have you never criticize the crazy, but tents are for camping, but not for living. When someone is eating paint chips and salsa, is it okay to intervene or is it better to let mad dogs lie? 

 

And lastly, when a sad, deeply troubled, highly overrated, disturbed lunatic rambles on a podcast, do you listen and try to make sense of it? Or, as a sane person in the room, get on with your life and realize they were never all there to begin with.