Watercolor Poetry Collection: My Bookshelf is Connected to Someone's Loneliness... ◆ The Painful Days of Suffering from Hay Fever

My bookshelf is connected to someone's loneliness.
Is that book waiting to be read by someone?

[*This poem and illustration are inspired by the dialogue between the philosopher and the youth that appears in 'The Courage to Be Disliked', and give form to that worldview.]

The Youth with a Runny Nose and the Philosopher in the Dead of Night

[Youth]
Unstoppable tears, overflowing runny nose, even after spring has passed,
my night never ends. This is a bug in the body,
a curse of nature. In this lonely suffering,
where is the shadow of another person?

Teacher, your claim that
'all problems are interpersonal relationships'
is mere armchair theory, a cold and cruel argument!

[Philosopher]
Close your eyes quietly and ask yourself:
Who are those unstoppable tears meant to be shown to?

The undeniable fact of an allergy—
what kind of 'purpose' shield have you made of it in your heart?

By saying 'I'm not feeling well, so it's natural I can't do it,'
have you not made it a card to protect yourself
from the judgment of others?

[Youth]
Ah, what terrifying words!
Are you saying I am suffering from this illness because I want to?

That I am intentionally drowning in discomfort
to slack off or to elicit sympathy!
I am just enduring the pain!

[Philosopher]
I am not blaming you; I am handing you the key.
If the cause is 'nature,' you will be a helpless victim
for your entire life. But,

if the purpose is 'fear of interpersonal relationships,'
you can change your way of living from this very moment.

A 'body that runs at the nose' is an unchangeable fact,
but deciding 'therefore I am unhappy' is your interpretation.

[Youth]
You want me to accept an unchangeable fact?
How, while remaining in this uncomfortable body?

Isn't a peaceful life something that lies beyond good health!

[Philosopher]
The obsession that you cannot be happy unless you become a perfect self—
that is the true congestion blocking your heart.

You can trust others even while your nose is running.
You can dance in the present while remaining incomplete.

What is needed is not time waiting for a cure,
but the 'courage to be disliked' to accept your current self
and step toward others!

[Youth]
...The night breeze is drying the tears on my cheeks.
Was it not the cedar trees I was cursing,
but my own cowardice, fearing to be hurt?

My nose is still stuffed,
but my heart seems to have begun to breathe, ever so slightly.

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