Thou Shalt Not Lie

In memory of Ms. Bodily, who is not dead.

Back in high school I read a short story called Miss Brill. It's pretty short, so if you want to read it quick, click the link. Otherwise, I'll summarize that its about an old lady who dresses up and goes to the park every Sunday afternoon. She sits and listens to other peoples conversations and imagines herself to be an integral part of the scene until she overhears a young couple laughing at her appearance and insinuating that she's just in the way.

The story suggests that it is very easy to imagine an alternate reality where life is a little more the way we wish it was, but by focusing only on our ideal world, we isolate ourselves from the real world. I thought of this story because I've been sort of falling into my imagination lately. I've always done a lot of imaging about the future and about what people are thinking about me. My current life doesn't offer enough excitement so I fantasize that someday I'll have a real job, or an acceptable boyfriend. I even fantasize that people read my blog. I've done this sort of thing since I was very young and I think I do a pretty good job of keeping a grip on reality. The danger is though, that if I am too comfortable with my fantasies, I don't focus enough on making reality comfortable. So maybe I should be cleaning my room instead of writing this. Good night adoring readers!