Everyone is in the process of “meaning making.” For each individual there is a quest for meaning, and their sole existence is about finding that object of worship, job they love, a spouse that will love them back, or a child that they can nurture and grow into a version of themselves. It is so easy to condemn someone for how they find meaning, and rightfully so. Many people hope to find their meaning through power. Through power they might be able to control the world. More possessions equal more control and their meaning making journey continues to be consumed by the accumulation of that power. They are deemed evil because the accumulation of that power leads them to nefarious actions – stealing, murder, betrayal. All those actions they feel will help them make meaning of this life.
We seek conflict. Even though we pretend that we hate it, we
thrive on it. Because the absence of conflict leads to an empty void that we
must fill. We dream of a utopia—a perfect world free of strife, anger, and
confrontation. But once we arrived, we would make it into a second hell by
introducing our necessary conflicts.
Seeking good is as much of a trap as seeking evil--trapped
in a world where every action is necessary to find our meaning in perfect
goodness. A perfect world that pleases our deity and brings us some reward in
the next life. It is clear why religion is so addictive. It solves the riddle for
so many that there must be a meaning greater than what they see. There has to
be more. And that quest leads them into resolute crusade of good works--seeking
out evil and squashing it; making sure that evil deeds and individuals are
identified, converted, and led down the same path of meaning making as them.
I recently discovered
-- not necessarily a profound revelation – that most of life is boring.
Most of life is eating, planning our work, working, more eating, some pleasurable
activities, then sleep. Then the cycle starts over each day. Different versions
of this reality exist for every person on the planet. An extremely small
percentage of our life includes those activities that bring us happiness. We
would love to fill every waking spare moment with them, but even those
activities bring us no joy if performed consistently and without purpose. We
also seek the thrill of adventure – pushing our bodies in physical performance,
climbing mountains, games, and sports. But each of those activities also become
a part of the regiment of daily routines. Each activity brings us brief
fleeting joy. When we don’t find meaning in this recreation, confusion ensues because
we can't understand how these adventures never add anything substantial to our quest for meaning.
So what is the meaning of life? That is an impossible question to answer. It is not just a stopover on the journey to perfection, utopia, and enlightenment that many believe it to be. It is also not a hell that we build by our own hands; misery created when the means we have justified meet their ultimate consequences by the laws of society or common sense. The meaning of life is “meaning making.” So it appears we are back where we started.
The meaning of life is what you make it. What you craft it into. What you design it to be. When you reach the end, it may appear in the eyes of the world to be senseless garbage. Or it might be a work of art crafted out of the tinsel, fluff, and trash of your life; like a toddler decorating a Christmas tree. It is messy. But just like a toddler, since you don’t know any better, it is the tree of your creation. Just like the toddler, you can smile and know you did your best. Even if the world only sees it as garbage.
Take comfort in
knowing that everyone is on a parallel journey to find meaning in it all.
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