On Sound Minds
Is there truly any such thing as a sound mind? Is that not merely another form of certainty? A security in, what, normalcy? No, for soundness is a spectrum, not a binary. Bimodal, at extremest. The threshold, as usual, is fuzzy. But it does grant us that we may speak of sound and unsound minds, even if these conceptual clouds find themselves in overlap. Here we find another Venn Diagram.
A sound mind is a foundational requirement for a satisfied life. A sound mind is a mind that can invite, host, feed, accommodate, and wave goodbye to the thing that makes great joys possible with minimal adverse effect: suffering, and great suffering.
The joy of learning a skill after hours, days, months, years of painful toil and failure. The joy of creating a work after draft after redraft after criticism, or even starting over. The joy of looking out over a picturesque valley after a taxing and toiling climb up a mountain.
Differently: The joy of a fresh, free breath after weeks of a blocked nose. The joy of a walk after being bed-bound. The joy of spinning around in a wheelchair after becoming a paraplegic. The joy of new love after a devastating divorce. The joy of company after extended solitude.
What does not kill you can make you stronger or weaker. A sound mind will find joy no matter the outcome. An unsound mind will find themselves a step closer to the precipice.