Rediscovering the Mad Hatter

“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn’t. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn’t be. And what it wouldn’t be, it would. You see?”
― Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass

Sometimes, I re-read some classics. Actually, I don’t read the whole thing. Just the parts I highlighted. Most of the time, it’s all about a character. Characters creates the world in wich they occur. Mostly like human beings. The world occurs to you from the stand point of “who you are being”. When  I write, it’s the characters that come first. Then  create a world that suits them. Wonderland feels like that for me. I don’t know Lewis Carroll’s deep writing secrets, but I could guess the characters appeared and then the world took shape; especially around the Hatter. (I am making up stuff here, it’s not the truth 😛 )

So, in Alice in Wonderland, I have always been very fond of the Mad Hatter.  I liked the way he “explained” the world. Or maybe it was the way he didn’t explain it, that gave some kind of meaning to it. Something in the range of: There is no meaning, stop looking for one! I like the “There is no meaning” philosophy. He “killed time” and then life could be an endless tea party.

The Mad Hatter reminds me to stop being so significant about small stuff. At the same time, let’s not be fooled:

Smile and serve

Never ask again “How are you doing?”
Laugh away the pain and just drink tea
In a spin, turn my life upside down
Have a new view of my surroundings
Celebrate the day
And spin again right before the day is born
Close my eyes on the decay and despair
When guests arrive at the table
Smile and serve; smile and serve

With great respect! A.

“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.”
“I don’t much care where –”
“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go.”
― Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland