What is the point of this life?
To try and put it succinctly, everything feels meaningless. Anything I do with my time feels meaningless. It's been a while since I've had these feelings - like nothing in this world really really matters, on the grand scale of things.
In my faith, we are told that this life is a test - that we are accountable for the decisions we make and for the way we choose to exercise our willpower. Our ability to rationalize, to think about what we're doing and why we're doing it, to analyze our actions and to justify our behaviour - these are all uniquely human traits. I am told that my sole purpose in life is to go on my own journey of recognizing the existence of my Creator and then living my life according to what He has said. I am told that perhaps if I strive to please God and live according to His rules, I will be rewarded greatly int he next life, the one that lasts an eternity.
I am told that God is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful, that He is the Most Loving, the Beginning and the End. He is the Ultimate Truth, and the One with all the answers. But it bothers me that I still don't really get why I, specifically I, exist.
You've got to admit, there's no dearth of beauty on this Earth. The mountains, the birds, the trees, deserts and oceans - there is so much magnificent beauty everywhere. Perhaps if I could stop thinking about all this so much, I could learn to live in peace and possibly stumble upon this mystery of life in the form of a sudden epiphany. It is an option...
But perhaps still, the whole point of us existing is for each of us to find our own unique meaning to our being alive. Why I exist may not be for the same reason why you exist. But the one thing that binds us together is perhaps our need to live to the best of our abilities, based on what we have and what we acquire in the way of health, wealth, intelligence and compassion. By being alive, we can choose to help ourselves and in the process, realize and act upon how we can help others with what we have. In this sense, we can choose to look at our own will as a gift or a curse.
As Mark Manson says in his book 'The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A Fuck', "Life is about not knowing and then doing something anyway. All of life is like this. It never changes...Don't ever forget that. And don't ever be afraid of that".
That is one of the best pieces of advice I have ever received.
