Marilyn Monroe

I don't consider myself a celebrity worshiper, I never read the scandal sheets and often can't put a name to a face, but one celebrity I do like is Marilyn Monroe.

I argue with those who consider that her life was not successful because she was unhappy, I'm not sure she was all that miserable until right at the end. I'll tell you why I think so.

Now Marilyn's mother and grandmother had paranoid schizophrenia, and so did Marilyn. Her mother spent most of her life in an institution and was very unhappy, if there is a tragic person, if was the mother. But Marilyn, despite her condition went on to become one of the most adored women in the world. She went to a lot of places and knew a lot of important people.

If there is a tragedy in all of this, it's that people with schizophrenia are seen as less than human. How much better would hers and other people lives had been if she could have spoken openly about her condition.

"How are you today, Marilyn?"

"I'm just hallucinating tigers right now but I'll be okay." Or something, so that she and other wouldn't have to hide themselves away for fear of being shunted off the the 'nut house'.

More than anything, fear of being institutionalized destroys any kind of happiness that the schizophrenic may have. To be constantly worried of being wrestled to the ground and injected with a substance that makes you drool all over yourself is a total mood killer

How would anyone like to be treated like that?

So, in my opinion, the only tragedy in MM's life was the one that all paranoid schizophrenics suffered along with her, having to hide and be ashamed of their condition and being treated like some sort of terrible lunatic. If only she and others could have talked about what they had, they wouldn't have had to hide and in her case, she might not have over medicated herself.

In view of the fact that most of her kind spent their lives in mental wards, I see her life story as a success, albeit a short one.

And speaking of horror...my e-book, The Mountain City Bronzes is available at Amazon.com and Kobo and Smashwords along with being available for download at the MuseItUp Publishing bookstore.