Everyone has particular psychological quirks; they only become a mental illness if they turn detrimental. Mental illness is as much a part of a persons personality as anything else; whether a chemical imbalance, mood swings, or a delusional belief, all can be managed but are still a part of who we are. One does not have to remain mentally ill if we can find a healthy way to manage our psychological quirks. Illness only ensues when things get out of balance, and that which gets out of balance can be placed back into balance again.

Adjusting ones mentality away from illness takes work, and we will never be “the same” as others (really who is?), but it is possible to achieve a healthy, happy existence. Our internal world is often the only thing we can truly control, and, though it may be hard, we can choose health and happiness regardless of outside circumstance. The dungeon around me is a self-punishing, self-pitying window dressing for my thoughts. My body may not be able to pass through its walls but my mind can transcend them with ease. This may sound like madness to some, and that’s okay because, while I may be “mad,” I am not angry; I’m neurodivergent. I have all sorts of feelings, visions, and on-off beliefs that do not conform to consensus reality. It is why, in my interactions with others, empiricism is of such great importance to me so that I never again cause harm because of delusional beliefs. These altered perceptions can be harmless fun, unparalleled creative fuel, or devastatingly dangerous. The latter is why I’m spending my foreseeable future living in a prison alongside career criminals and sadistic guards; however, my physical confines are amusingly quite immaterial to my overall wellbeing. This is not to suggest I neglect my body; I enjoy eating healthy, ethical food, training my fitness to its limits, and emotional and intellectual intimacy with other beings. Obviously, I would be much happier where and with whom I wish, but this confinement is, as all things, transitory. It is but one part of my life, and my existence is not on hold just because I am here. This writing, this ‘reverie,’ first in my mind then on paper then in digital form, is one testament to this truth- the nature of reality is intrinsically subjective but we must never fall into delusions of narcissistic, cynical solipsism. We must never neglect the welfare of others. Empiricism, then, is the verifiable truism that applies in a multiple of perspectives of living beings. The task at hand is to refine this methodology to be ever more considerate or ethically conscious of the lives of other beings.

Why care? Because we are all in this Together. Scientifically, we are all interconnected. Separation is the illusion; we are all a community of cells which make up our bodies all working together, and those (arbitrarily defined) bodies are part of an interconnected biosphere. We are all of us Earthlings and that earth is a part of the solar system, which, is itself, a part of one galaxy, which is a part of the Universe and possibly a multiverse potentially ad infinitum…

We are not alone. the first building block of existence is consciousness awareness, awareness then builds understanding sentience, sentience then builds the personal world which we call our mind. It is here we must begin to build Order from Chaos, Health from Beauty. To harm others is to harm ourselves, to harm ourselves is to harm others. Chaos can be perceived as either beautiful or terrifying; it is that falling into terror that can turn the lovely fractal asymmetry of our minds sick. In the words of Frank Herbert, “I must not fear, fear is the mind killer, fear is the little death that brings total obliteration”

But nothing is permanent, change is the universal constant. Even our sickness can be converted to Health; This takes our intention, our effort, and actions of anti-entropy (such as the sharing of information). As I write this, I feel myself as a conduit of the wisdom of a universe, the greater collective consciousness. Perhaps this is egotism, perhaps not, but perhaps more than one thing can be true at once. The ancients may have not so allegorically called this sensation their “muse.” Whatever the source, I believe this message, and I believe that it is worth sharing. This may be hard to understand; you may feel it is not worth the effort to try but please fellow Earthlings- Other selves. Do try, try to align your perception with this vision I’m compelled to teach, this communication I have a need to express. It is a vision that I believe is worth seeing.