Why You Should Read The “Crap” On Thought Catalog, And Write

“The Source of all things, the luminescence, has more forms than heaven’s stars, sure. And one good thought is all it takes it shine…No matter what you do, no matter where you are lost, the luminescence never leaves you.” – The Mountain Shadow, Gregory David Roberts

We all born from hope, made of stardust, hurtling on a rock through space, tied inexorably to one another. I’m sure you have heard this before. If you’re like my dear friends, you’ve laughed it off, or scrolled onward, unmoved. More than one just shook his head, sighed, and closed his computer. But you are here. We are here. And that simple fact binds us in a wonderful story of its own.

This is part of the story about why we write, and more importantly why here, on this website. Like many publications, this site spans time, topics, literature, and geography. But more important, it closes a greater distance, one that we are too jaded, negative, and fearful to approach. The message of this story, my story, the story of this website is that you should co-create more — write, in this case — for it is inherently a simple and profound act of love which can and will cause a shift.

The opening of The Mountain Shadow (the Shantaram sequel) is one of the greatest single written paragraphs of all time, as it addresses our roots, our luminescence, and the inability for our hearts to lie. It’s eloquent, pure, and speaks as directly to the heart. It reminds me why I write; why I choose this particular medium. Gregory David Roberts knows humanity the way Shakespeare does. His books revolve around an important philosophical distinction: that the driving force of the human universe is split into positive characteristics (freewill, freedom, love, etc) and negative (hate, fear, anger, etc). The positive characteristics have creation, and co-creation, at their core.

The simple fact is that we are not alone. We are one instance of the complexity of the universe. What I’ve mentioned (ad nauseam, for those friends still reading) is that despite being together, we often put aside our ability to connect more deeply. We marginalize it. We live densely together in this city among millions, somehow disconnected in our own small fields of individuality, like isolated pods somehow dry yet awash of this sea of humanity.

Our ability to write, share, compose, record, create and co-create is at an all time high in human history. It is important that we have arrived here. We also have debatably the most social unrest, revolution, and discontent in our history. We are moving toward something.

Irrespective of the medium, of the worth of the work, of the fear of rejection and reprisal, we are bound together to co-create. Together we create written works, paintings or pogroms, children and families, readings or revolutions, for better or worse. What we create has our essence in it, the positive and negative, good and evil. So what do we do to foster the positive in us all? To help every community feel fully expressed, understood, accepted, and treated fairly? Right now we come up short, and we can do better. We can write more. We can create better. We are connected, and we can come to it in different and important ways.

My posts on this site contain simple calls to action. They share ways in which people have helped shift my consciousness, and some lessons. This post is a simple request that I hope continues a greater shift: write more, read more, and co-create more. The real problems of the world do not end tomorrow, but an important step is to recognize that the shift has meaning, and you have something to give of importance, because we are all connected. We are each a series of circuits learning to be connected, between our minds, hearts, and high selves. It starts with one act of co-creation. Share something.

Every piece I’ve written has been with my editor, a friend, or someone I love who inspires and challenges. I have yet to create a single entry alone. They are all touched, and guided by someone else.

In the future, as in the past, we will discuss many more tangible steps involving meditation, thought consciousness, and many other (potentially eye roll inducing) topics. But now, here, we should read each other, write for each other, and co-create. For the record, again, I feel you in these words as readily as in my veins, and I’m asking, on behalf of a larger more connected world, for you to remember your luminescence.

And Shine.