Thank you Sharon.. for writing what I am thinking far more eloquently than I ever could :))

INSANITY! #+$=@^(~?!&%

Posted on April 7, 2013 by Sharon Gilbertson

“Have I gone mad?” the Mad Hatter

“I’m afraid so.  You’re entirely bonkers.  But, I’ll tell you a secret.  All the best people are.” Alice, in Alice In Wonderland

 

Insanity…..is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting different results.  Albert Einstein

 

“Insanity is hereditary, you get it from your kids.”  Sam Levenson

 

“Insanity is for me, super sanity.  The normal is psychotic.  Normal means lack of imagination, lack of creativity.”  Jean Dubuffet

 

“Insanity runs in my family.  It practically gallops.”  Cary Grant

 

World English Dictionary:  insanity  1. relatively permanent disorder of the mind; state or condition of being insane  2. law  a defect of reason as a result of mental illness, such that a defendant does not know what he or she is doing or that it is wrong  3. utter folly; stupidity How about you?

“Insanity” hasn’t been something I’ve really cared to ponder, well, not until recently.  I had a very emotional epiphany, on a hot August day, in 2011.  That day, I stepped out of “my zone” long enough to see how I was caught up in an energetic, albeit sincere, hamster-wheel-dance.  My epiphany occurred when I was in the middle of a month-long time of solitude; my husband was out-of-town.  There was a lot of time that I could sit quietly to meditate, and to reflect.  On that particular day I just stopped, as a light seemed to flicker on and off, and then burned brightly in my brain:  “Hey, bird brain, has this road, most travelled,  ever really worked?”, “Has Wile E. Coyote ever caught the Roadrunner?” 

Of course, the answer was no.  I was caught up in the “activity of busy-ness” and that had always been my reward.  I was doing the same thing over, and over again, fully expecting a different outcome!

The word “insanity” is scary, and the thought of being insane makes most of us uncomfortable.  So, we make light of it with funny quotes, and jokingly say how we love our insanity.  When, in fact, the reality of insanity is downright scary.  I never thought that Alzheimer’s (dementia) would knock on our family door, but it has.  My wonderful mother has Alzheimer’s, her memory retention has gone, and her condition is progressing rapidly now.

Of course, it’s difficult for me, or my family, to find humor within my Mother’s situation.  Although, we all laughed heartily when Mom got confused and started to crawl into bed with my husband, and not Dad.  She laughed, too.

I continue to think that it’s healthy to make light of things, to laugh at ourselves, and of course let our “silliness” out while we walk, run, and sometimes stumble through life.  I’ve just decided that I don’t want to “kid” myself anymore, I’m craving the truth behind my actions.  Without a clear vision, I’ll simply turn my back on the many opportunities to learn, to grow, and to “take the road less traveled”.

How about you?

Love, sharon