I recently finished reading Stephen King’s latest novel The Outsider, which left an interesting thought crammed into the dark places of my mind. About the power of believing.
The cover of my copy of The Outsider I LOVE IT
The beginning of the book dwells in proof, in what could be touched and seen, in what must be true. No matter how wrong the reality of the evidence seemed, Detective Ralph Anderson would not let go, would not question reality.
By the middle of the story, dear Ralph questions everything, but remains firm in his grip on evidence, on DNA, on fingerprints, on eyewitnesses. Though nothing makes sense.
By the end, his world is altered, his poor mind crushed under the weight of the supernatural.
If we don’t believe, the things in the dark can’t hurt us. Don’t give the shadow in the corner a face. Don’t give the spirit in the attic a voice. Don’t look at the monster under the bed.
Just pull those covers up over your head. Right? We’ve all been there.
Picture of page from The Outsider…words by Stephen King
“What made you able to believe?” ~ from The Outsider by Stephen King
Acknowledging the being lurking in the closet, the guy in the woods with a knife, and the hissing demon make them real. We all know how that ends. With screaming. With blood. With death.
All frightfully terrible.
But…but…what if…
What if the opposite is true? What if not believing gives these creatures power?
Picture of a page of The Outsider…words by Stephen King
“They would believe because to admit any other possibility was to call reality itself into question.” ~ from The Outsider by Stephen King
We don’t want to question reality. Believing in the supernatural is hard, staying on the road of tangible evidence might be easier, but if no one believes, monsters wander unchecked, free to take, to kill, to slip in and out of alleys or even sit in the sunlight.
Some people will exist in their wonderful reality forever, never questioning, never reaching past the curtain of what can be seen and touched. Others will peer into the forgotten places, searching for the unexplainable, always ready to believe. A balance struck. Just like Detective Ralph Anderson, a few might change their minds when their lives are affected by the things living in the darkest holes of the impossible.
The world can be a scary place. Maybe letting the things that want to stay invisible be invisible isn’t a good idea. Maybe throwing a blanket over your head won’t save you.
Maybe we should believe.
(and call the Winchesters)
Cheers and nightmares,
Kathy