The History of Folly

Image; Dark, by KingaBritschgi/art/Dark-317446062

‘History as a record of the past has been told almost entirely in terms of its outer eventfulness and, in a sense, this is the least of history. History progresses on two levels, a manifest one and a profound one which is irresistible but not fully expressed, demanding to make itself known through the way we shape our lives in the world without, and through the failures and disasters brought about because this hidden, inner eventfulness is not fully recognised and given its due role in the human spirit and its societies. — Laurens van der Post

We have no more freedom than an oak tree. That is, we are free to be who we are or free to pretend that we are someone else. But we are not free to be someone else. — Anonymous

Folly has been my constant companion since the beginning. I’m of two minds, looking at the large role it has played in my life. I know that it has served as a corrective along the way because it leaves scars (I learn from scars). So I think I have to be grateful for its faithful service in showing me the path I’m not supposed to be traveling on, but I doubt if I would have wandered so cluelessly if I had possessed a clearer idea of who and what I was from childhood.

Being good at imitation didn’t help. I enjoyed putting on personas, which is a Latin word for mask or…