Your existence is defined by whatever you make of it....

From a friend;



I want to preface the following collection of semi-cohesive thoughts I'm about to share with you by saying up front that the truest meaning of life, in the end, is the one you ultimately decide on for yourself. Your existence is defined by whatever you make of it based on the choices you've made, the experiences you've seen, and how those experiences affected to shape who you've been, who you are, and who you will be. I cannot speak for you or anyone else in regards to this admittedly personal subject matter, and in no way wish to shove any of my own beliefs or ideals down the throat of any person who reads this. I only intend to present my own perspective and maybe inspire some consideration on your part to stop and think about what this world means to you, if only for a few minutes. It's an important exercise to practice but too easily forgotten due to the day in day out demands of life.

In the totality of our existence as a conscious race, there is no greater question the human being has ever posed to itself than the one that also duals as our most fundamentally simplistic: What is the meaning of life? Anyone who has spent even the briefest amount of time pondering on this particular matter is well aware that arriving at a conclusive resolve is about as likely as finding a pot of gold at the end of some bullshit rainbow. All this query ever leads to is a complicated mess of more questions that then becomes damn near impossible to thread back into one cohesive and articulated thought that comprehensively satisfies all angles.

I decided many years ago that (for me personally) the meaning of life is directly correlated to the experiences we share together, the memories we create, and our positive impact affecting those that surround us- whether directly or indirectly. The simplest (& simultaneously surely most complicated) phrasing is this: the meaning of life is to progress and evolve the existence of good. I don't believe the question at hand necessitates the answer to be of the profound enlightenment we all expect it must in order to justify any validation. HOW all of this (and us) came to be into existence is not an issue nor should be considered here, I'm coming from a position of acceptance in existence and acknowledging the concepts of (for lack of a better term) good and evil are a given- along with the fact that we're both here and conscious. It is what it is. Collectively if we're able to agree on and begin from this mind set, I believe the only meaning we can (or should) find in this lifetime is in consistent and conscious efforts for living and acting from a place of good. And remembering just how limitless the idea of good really is in providing peace, comfort, and happiness. We should always be looking to create and demonstrate the infectious, forward momentum inducing power of what is good and right. To clarify- I am not speaking of the simple, good natured actions such as leaving a 35% tip to the waiter all in the spirit of giving. While that certainly is a branch of this much larger tree I'm describing (and absolutely has its place), that to me falls under the generally accepted rule of thumb to simply not be a dick. Rather, the position I'm presenting is more taking an active effort to be more aware of the people that surround your life and the role you play in each of theirs- no matter how big or small. From your spouse, to your parents, to the 7-11 employee, to a stranger in passing- at the end of my time here I know I'll find the most meaning and purpose will not be from what I got out of this life, but how much and how positively (forward momentum) I was able to contribute to every relationship I ever maintained. How much good and positive energy did I give to the world around me? How much did I affect others that resulted in a form of growth, inspiration, laughter, challenged perspective, new ideas, better understanding, or any number of ideals we associate with the pursuit of peace and contentment.

The practice of maintaining the foundation towards existing to positively impact is not always simple nor easy, often times the actions needed and/or taken may not be perceived by the recipient as being a positive for their life until much time has passed; but in the end regret doesn't exist wherever there is confidence in knowing that choices made were in efforts to serve the greater good. It is quite genuinely surprising to me that the human race has not, in our thousands of years of existence thus far, been able to put the simple equation together and collectively act on the basic principle that (in our daily interactions and relationships with people) if all we're ever concerned about is the notion of giving... the getting we all so crave will be ensured to every one of us in an equal value. Both literally and figuratively speaking, the idea of living with the approach of always taking into consideration how ones actions might make this place a little more fun or rewarding for others to co exist with, the happier you will find yourself on a regular basis. Parents like to throw around the phrase "you get out of things what you put into them", and there really may be no truer statement- but it's easy to overlook how applying that fact to the bigger overall picture of an entire lifespan might present a fresh take.

With all of my pontificating, I think John and Paul were able to say everything I just have with equally as much weight, but far less soap box, in one simple line:

In the end the love you take is equal to the love you make.

These are thoughts I've lived with for years but never once put down in writing. Figured if I was going to do so might as well share them with anyone curious enough to read, I hope this challenges and inspires thought. Even if you don't agree, these are things the human race is too damn distracted by technology to make the time to really consider as a whole anymore. Terrifies me honestly.

Welp, this is a great post. I myself am guilty of being too distracted by technology and may have to be more introspective about things. I might give you a more detailed reply later.

Good and evil are hard concepts to define, but for lack of better terms, epistemologically speaking, it's not too far off from knowing and having such knowledge of our existence and consciousness. This knowledge doesn't necessarily give us any real insight or conclusion into the meaning of life however. Even if you have acquired a set of knowledge with an infinite number of elements, that is still no guarantee that you would have reached such a conclusion... or even if that conclusion exists. It's all friggin bullshit in the end. So in that regard, yeah it's almost a given that we would eventually default to picking something that makes most sense to us. Or rather, your meaning of life is what you make of it, whatever you have decided.

I want to be good, and I want to perpetuate good. I want to have a positive impact on those around me, my friends, siblings, parents, teachers, bosses, waiters. However I'm not so sure I agree with the statement that "regret doesn't exist wherever there is confidence in knowing that choices made were in efforts to serve the greater good". When I used to be a white knight looking for his NAWALT, or even just being around women I had no interest in, I lived in a world where I thought I was being noble and I was pretty confident I was doing what I thought was the greater good, and I thought I was protecting what I thought was a kind and good person who would be grateful for all that I have done for her and would reciprocate in kind. Now I see it as wasted years. I suppose you could put in a caveat that perhaps she may show gratitude in some form or another, as you said, "often times the actions needed and/or taken may not be perceived by the recipient as being a positive for their life until much time has passed". In this case, I still think it may be a little too late. Also, this behavior could prove detrimental on a global scale, as we can see, white knights are the enablers of gynocentrism today. I suspect a lot of them would not do it if they took off the blue-pill shades and realize it wasn't for the greater good (though of course you may say they do it for sexual reward).

But just as good/evil are, epistemologically speaking, about the same as the knowledge of our existence and consciousness, so too is the concept of self-survival, the desire to continue to exist. Rather, it is a mere corollary to the position of acceptance of our consciousness (unless of course, one is suicidal, but I don't believe we are born suicidal so that's a moot point). As a result, my meaning of life, or rather, what makes most sense to me, is, "you get out of things what you put into them", as you say, but with a certain condition; as long as it's not asking for my life. You say "it is quite genuinely surprising to me that the human race has not, in our thousands of years of existence thus far, been able to put the simple equation together and collectively act on the basic principle that (in our daily interactions and relationships with people) if all we're ever concerned about is the notion of giving... the getting we all so crave will be ensured to every one of us in an equal value", but the very fact that the human race does not collectively act on this basic principle means that there has to exist a certain balancing act between being good and perpetuating good and giving, and being self-centered in order to survive.

Don't know how receptive you are with this one but I thought I'd give this one a shot.

Sir- the third paragraph you write has much to do with Awareness. Mankind seems to be going full-speed in reverse on that. We are becoming extensions of our mobile phones; we have our wireless Beats around-the-hear noise cancelling headphones - we are living OUR lives in our own worlds and only interact with others on a purely transactional basis when we must. A recent Pope once said that Use was the opposite of Goodness (I'm paraphrasing). Not Evil, but Use. That we use other people. Very few are sadists. But far too many view the world in a strictly opportunistic manner - then are surprised they live in a cruel world?

There was a great billboard not long ago that said if you're reading this from the highway, you're not IN traffic. You ARE traffic. There is nothing wrong about humanity that what's right about it can't cure. But we have to believe it matters. And want to remember how to live again in harmony with each other.