the purpose of living..

its been a while since i last posted..and i gave some thought to the purpose of life these past few days... i used to think that the purpose of living was to leave this world a little bit better... but, “better” means something different to me than it does to my mother, to my neighbors, and to people living thousands of miles away. 

hitler thought the world would be “better” without the Jews, and perhaps he believed on his dying bed that he had changed the world for the better... the lack of universality in the notion of “better” and its inherent subjectivity reject the idea that the purpose of life is to change the world for the better...

it occurred to me that the purpose of life is much simpler... the purpose of life is to be...you are fulfilling your purpose just by existing... your purpose is to experience the world and the universe in your own unique way... your experience of the universe is your purpose... by going to school, by going to work, by engaging in your relationships and by seeing the universe through your eyes, you are serving your purpose... by sleeping late, by idling – even by doing nothing, you are living out your purpose...

i know that people like to think otherwise; people like to think that their purpose in life is something grand and exciting... that they were born to save a family of four from a burning apartment at some point in the future... and maybe they will... or, maybe they won’t... there are millions of roles we will play during our lives... yes, at times we may be rescuers or saviors, and at other times we may be villains and thieves...we’ll have jobs, and we will make contributions to the world – some “good” and some “bad” depending on your frame of reference... but these roles aren’t our purpose; they come and go...

but what I’m suggesting is even grander... there are lots of heroes and leaders and such... but there is only one you... you are the only person that can experience the universe like you do... even if you live out your life in a cold, dark cave, you will have served your purpose – for no one can see the world like you...you’re the rarest of the rare... you’re the only one that will ever be as you are..

 there is only one me, there's no such thing as seven of me..