Theatrum Mundi's Resonance

All the world's a stage

In the quiet of this room, I am
the sum of all my parts,
a patchwork quilt laid bare for your eyes to trace –
we are each a mosaic, cobbled together from fragments.
Here we gather.

The threads that weave our stories intertwine and diverge;
I see myself in you as much as you do me:
an echo chamber where voices bounce off walls,
shattering silence with their resonances.
We share our tales like bread at communion -
breaking open crusts to reveal tender crumb within.

We are a puzzle, scattered pieces strewn
across the floor – edges sharp and jagged,
soft curves of color ebbing into one another.
The triumphs we find in connecting our corners:
the places where stories meld and mold to form new shapes,
a kaleidoscope of memories spun together.

Heartaches too, these shadows that drape over us like shrouds;
hushed whispers asking for solace or understanding -
we offer them up as sacrifices on this altar made from hope,
healing found within each other's arms
and the balm of words shared between kindred souls.

"Theatrum Mundi" is a Latin term that means "Theatre of the World." The idea has a long history in Western thinking and literature, stretching back to antiquity but becoming most popular throughout the Renaissance and Early Modern eras.

The theory behind "Theatrum Mundi" is that the world is a theatre, and all of us are only actors on it. In his play "As You Like It," William Shakespeare notably used this phrase:

"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players; they have their exits and their entrances..."

This notion also appears in philosophy, notably in metaphysics. It is the belief that the world is a huge play or performance in which everyone, sometimes unintentionally, participates. This metaphor has been used to investigate topics ranging from social roles and identity to morality and destiny.

The term "Theatrum Mundi" also refers to a network of individuals and organizations that investigate the link between the arts, culture, and public life via conferences, workshops, research projects, and a poetry platform.