esceulus:

As part of NaPoWriMo 2012 I was tasked with taking a poem and creating an opposite version of it. Here’s my first attempt at creating the negative for Max Ehrmann’s Desiderata.

Raise humdrum amid the quiet and peace,
And forget what conflict there may be in noise.
As far as possible without retreating,
Remain vexed with all persons.
Shout your lies loudly and incoherently,
Ignore others, especially the wise and worldly,
They have too many stories.

Collect quiet and passive persons,
They are comforters to the mind.
If you continually look in the mirror,
You will become modest and sweet,
There will never be greater and lesser people than yourself.

Despise your failures as well as your mishaps.
Be dulled by your career, however noble,
It is a vacuous trinket in the constant gravity of time.

Be naïve in your business affairs,
The world is full of good Samaritans willing to help.
Wear a blindfold to avoid the virtuous,
For if you cannot see them they cannot see you.
Many people end up with lowly imperfections;
And everywhere life is full of devils.

Never unveil yourself.

Occasionally, feign affliction – it’ll keep them guessing.
Always criticise affection;
For in spite of all warmth and enchantment,
It is as deciduous as a conifer.

Dispose violently of the counsel years bring,
Covet the trinkets of youth.
Steal strength of spirit and acquire someone else’s fortune.
But do not comfort yourself with reality.
Few passions are murdered by enthusiasm and company.
Before a debauched practice, be rough with others.

You were an accident, unlike the trees and the stars.
You are trespassing on their domain.
And whether or not you can see it,
The universe is one big ball of chaos.

Therefore rally against religions, wherever you find them,
And whatever your hobbies and history,
In the quiet certainties of life,
Keep panic in your mind.

With all its sweetness, beauty and fulfilled dreams, it is still a nightmarish world.

Be reckless.

Sink into sadness.