No matter how many times I go through the suicide note, a chill runs down my spine. And, suddenly I realize all over again how the prejudices of life cannot be drowned even by the best of riches and fame. No, glamour cannot be equal to felicity if we go by the life and words of Kurt Cobain. The sweetness of success lasts only until the point we want it to. Even if we are surrounded by a huge crowd of admirers, the uproar cannot pierce through our loneliness unless we allow it to.
Sometimes, even the most familiar of senses go numb, and the wakefulness dawns upon us that whatever we and our achievements are today, is soon going to become history. So, wasting time doing things we don’t want to do, or things that don’t excite us is simply unaffordable. We are so busy impressing others that we forget to live our own life. How pathetic is that? Yes, we have only one life. And, here are the lessons from Cobain’s suicide note you must remember if you want to live it happily:
Defy the mundane.
If a certain work is not instilling interest in your heart, you can never do it with perfection. Flaws will come up every time and suffocate you with guilt – of wrongdoing, of imperfection, and of failure.
We have always known Cobain as an extraordinary music persona, a songwriter, a performer. Nirvana goes synonymous with this name. We have seen his zeal on stage and felt the fire in his tone. But, was Cobain living in his own skin? Was he happy doing it? What made him cook up ‘Boddah’ in the first place?
Yes, when you can’t communicate your inner voice to the world out there, you tend to detach yourself from it. The roar of the crowd goes unheard. And the moment your work loses its charm in your eyes, it is nothing more than slogging. Do you want to keep on doing it? Would it not be wiser to break free?
Success cannot cure despondency.
There’s no solution to your low spirits other than yourself. The success achieved in your work is like a painkiller. Its action is temporary. And, eventually when the effect wears off, the pain comes back, and it is even more unbearable.
The best way to combat despair is to stop being stagnant. The more you are saturated with success of one kind, the more monotonous it will get. If you are an artist, try your hands in singing. If you are a writer, indulge in pottery. May be then, you will learn to appreciate your skills and your work.
Wear the hide like an elephant.
No one is immune to heartbreak. However, the more you are permeable to misery, the more it will grasp you. And it’s a bad, harsh world out there. You must prepare your bones for the inevitable onslaught. Unfortunately, Cobain had realized it very late.
Yes, be like the little child who cries his heart out for the sake of his broken toy in one moment, and cheers up the in the very next when a new one arrives. Stay miserable and the world is going to get on your nerves.
You can’t stay in everyone’s good books.
All throughout your life, you will meet some people who will love you and others who wouldn’t think twice before breaking your heart. It’s okay to have a few foes. It’s even okay to have no friends at all. Fair weather is not wanted as a replacement of quality.
Yes, this is what you become when you try to love one and all. Learn to create bridges and break meaningless ties. And yes, there’s no use trying to fix a broken mirror. Learn to let go.
Stop being charitable about trust.
Pin your faith on people with great caution. The more you are sure about them, the more the chances of you getting hurt. It’s good to be skeptical about a person’s good deeds and doubt his intentions, because you are just saving your little, brittle heart.
A good way is to hope for the best and stay prepared for the worst. A person’s true color shows up only in the darkest hour. And, if you want to witness this, untie the blindfold of trust covering your eyes. So, what are you waiting for? Snap out of the societal norms. Let the sunshine touch your inner self.
Laugh.
Love.
Live.