So I’ll let my brother talk for me. We have an ok relationship, so I hope he isn’t angry for my re-posting this…
Concatenation (I had to look this word up –
Yesterday at 6:08pm
I have food, clothing and shelter. At this moment I am warm at 72 degrees despite the outdoor temperature of 30 degrees F. I am able to drive less than two miles to three different shopping centers and over two dozen restaurants, including three all-you-can-eat buffets that cost less than $8 per person. I can shop in several grocery stores stocked with thousands of food products — the most variety ever seen by humanity.
A huge array of products are available that make life easier and better:
* I can watch 200 channels on cable with my TV
* I can surf the Internet or play a game with my computer
* I can call people on or my cell phone
* I can wash my clothes in the washer and dry them in the dryer
* I can play a DVD that I can rent for $3
* I can take a warm shower
* I can flip on any of the dozens of light switches when it is dark
If I get suddenly ill I can call 911 and a team of extremely competent people will be at my door in less than five minutes to transport me to one of the three modern, fully equipped emergency rooms within 10 miles of my home. If I get hungry I can open the refrigerator or the pantry and cook a snack or a meal on the stove or in the microwave. If I want to travel I can fly to almost anywhere in the world from the international airport that is 10 miles away. If on a whim I decide I want to, I can drive my car to Disney World tonight and shake Mickey’s hand tomorrow morning. The mail arrives every day. So does the newspaper. So do the packages from FedEx and UPS. So does a nice hot pizza containing a total of 2,500 calories if I order one and pay $10. There’s a scale in the bathroom that tells me I eat too much. There’s a thermostat on the wall that keeps the temperature just right. There are smoke detectors on the ceiling that will wake me in case of a fire and let me get safely away from the building. Then my insurance policy will pay for the damage.
My point here is simple: We take it completely for granted, but life in America is utterly amazing. Absolutely, utterly, amazing.
Who created all of this? Did God? Certainly not. People have created all of this by agreeing to work together. We have come together to create an orderly society that gets better and better through cooperation.
Think about the allies coming together World War II to fight evil. Or the space program in the 1960s and 1970s, where thousands of people came together to accomplish the impossible and go to the moon. Or any big political campaign that wins against the odds. Or a business that has a fantastic mission and vision. Or any charitable organization focused on accomplishing something good and worthwhile. When people are involved in projects like these, their lives are richer and fuller because they are working toward a common purpose with a group of fellow human beings. In those experiences we can find a powerful message about the meaning of life.
The meaning of your individual life is bounded by the accomplishments of our species. Although each of our lives is fleeting, our species as a whole is a chain stretching back thousands of years and stretching forward for an unknown distance. You are one link in that chain. Each of us contributes to the world. Our children inherit the world that we create.
What is the meaning of life? It is about loving and being loved. It is about helping and being helped. It is about giving and receiving, asking and accepting. It is about working with other people and allowing them to work with you. Life is about dreaming of something better, and then making it happen. For all of us now. For our children in the future. Life’s meaning is about what we do today and tomorrow with the time we have available. It comes in thinking about that time — that precious moment that is your life — and making the most of it in a way that is unique to you. You and six billion others mold this planet and create the future for our children. Together we create the path of our species.
Now, do yourself a favor and try to wrap your head around this:
The Venus Project
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