A Memory of Light

Bad title for a blog that only barely touches on it, as it will come up for wheel of time searches, but its somewhat appropriate.

The last book in the wheel of time franchise is due out in march next year? At least thats the latest pushed back date I have heard. I finished towers of midnight earlier this year. But in the last couple of days I have been reading online forums about the series and just been having a lot of "what if..." daydreams set in this series.

I started reading the series when i was in year seven, which coincidently was the year book 7 was released. And i powered through those books (at least it felt like powering through them to me at the time) in a few months. And they provided a wealth of escapism for me during school life. and with the occassional release of a new one every two years or so since then, each time i read, i am reminded of the same sort of escapism.

This has come to the point now that when i read them, its almost like a nostelgia for me. Like i half remember the story as a previous life, since my memories of school have faded more than my memories of this book. And now when i think of it, its like how the kids in the Narnia chronicles must feel when they grow up, able to remember their adventures but cant ever find them again (locked out of the world they and only able to remember it as a nice story from their past).

And this nostelgia, it makes me feel as if i should be able to go out into the world and find some new, exciting and possibly fantasy inspired life... Then i watched some documentaries by louis theroux on sub-cultures in america. And it was so depressing. The people have a life that entertains and consumes them, but im stuck with one foot in the camp of "admire that they found something to satisfy their lives" and the other in "condescending derision of their frivolous persuits".

Its as though i can see that the direction of your life is self defined (ie what you see as important, if you commit yourself and your attitude to it enough, is important) but at the same time, feel like i need to be doing something awesome and world changing.

The upcoming release of AMOL is like the release of the last lotr movie or hp movie. They were such big parts of my "escapism" self, and now they done, and finished, without a significant change in my life or the world. a "well thats over, what now?". I really want to know the ending, but once its done, it will no longer be a living place to escape, but a memory past.