The chatter is gone.
You lose yourself in the crackling sound of a single off-brand potato chip as it explodes on your tongue. That taste. The excess salt, the artificial flavors. It is too much. Too much is just right.
Your eyes are drawn to a singular source of light. You watch entire lifetimes condensed for your entertainment. The joy, the pain, the drama. It’s all on display for you, to distract your mind just enough to shut up while your serotonin levels rise and fall with every potato chip that bursts in your mouth. The emptiness is unrivaled.
This is your choice. That is to say, this is voluntary. Some would even say, necessary. A self-induced state of numbness. A way to remain arrested and empty for a period of time. You will be in this state for a few hours, up to several days, but you won’t stay forever, you will always find back.
There is such an attractive beauty in this mode of arrested being. It is a form of short term suicide, you brutally bring your mind and body to a standstill, erasing everything in the process.
But do not be mistaken, re-birth is anything but pleasant or refreshing. You have to brute-force yourself out of this state. The way out is the same way you came in. This is the luxury to not feel, the luxury of temporary numbness. Enjoy in moderation.
