THE MADNESS OF GENIUS - The Artist (excerpt from chapter 1)

Being all and being nothing. The madness of being an artist is fleeting from one emotion to another at a moment’s notice. There are times when I feel I am dancing in an elaborate ballroom full of eloquently dress emotions. Each is present; as are variations of all, to include morphs. Sometimes, I find a harmonic balance and fall into step with my emotional partner; I am tapped on the shoulder by a beauty in a different flowing dress. Other times, I get to waltz the entire evening with one elegant apparition. Each spirit brings with it a new and defining quality. The longer we dance, the deeper the understanding.
I have conveyed this to a few individuals and they claim me to have no soul. No soul? I believe it to be quite the contrary; not only do I possess a soul, I have complete unadulterated control of it.
Ships must have a destination. As well as absolute control and balance, they must also maintain a readiness for unknown squalls. That is precisely the ideology to which I assign myself. Some claim it a “no spin zone,” but I believe it is. Each emotion draws you in and tries to keep you anchored in its waters. One must remain vigilant at all times and be ready to raise sails and escape the lovely song of the resident siren. Enchanting is the sad song of lost love or the promise of hope on the horizon. Intoxicating is the melody that compliments a love that lasts forever. Without awareness, one easily gets lost and pulled under.
The members of the field of psychology in which I have conversed with in this matter have called me insane. They wanted to medicate me due to the lack of willingness to give control of my “gift” to the powers that be. Some have tried to lure me into their science of lies and deceit, while others attack with their redirected resentment and vocabulary of psychobabble BS. They have fallen prey to self imposed importance and are controlled by the mindless fools that sit upon their throne of righteousness and point fingers at the world. I refuse to play the blame game. We are each capable and responsible for our actions. Blaming others is cowardice. As a child, you hunted for the hidden Easter egg made of chocolate, now it is time to hunt for that golden egg of “self,” and see how beautiful you are.
For years, I fought the “voices” in my head. I listened to others tell me how out of tune I was with the world. How “mad” I was. Other claimed me a genius. How was I completing homework in class and way ahead of everyone else, if I was crazy? How was it possible to be a genius when I could not control the cascading flow of thoughts in my head? Focus was near impossible. I could not comprehend why the labels of madness and genius were both placed on me. I began to study Aristotle, Plato, Brahe, DaVinci, Mozart, Beethoven, Tesla, and many other great minds from the past. I also read up on psychology and found many things of interest. In today’s world, most of the great thinkers of the past would be diagnosed with some form of mental aberration and placed on a mood stabilizer or anti-depressant. That would hinder and stop their genius. It is a sad fact that if the government is not allowed full access and control of “genius,” it seeks to destroy it. It is difficult for those whom have forgotten the power of acceptance and complete surrender to the spirit to understand the abilities of calmness they offer. Having inkwells for each emotion and knowing how much to write about each is mandatory for controlling the elements. If you set aside the quill too long, or delve too deeply into one miasma, you might never regain control of this gift. Losing touch with creativity allows others to have power over you. You are not crazy for believing in magic. Magic is the pure awe of believing something until it happens. Knowing and understanding this fact is part of the genius of madness.

© Oct 20, 2012 ~ DBC, Duke of the Arctic