“What is the meaning of life?”, an age-old question that visited my thoughts while I was battling insomnia. Staring at the ceiling, unconsciously lulling myself to sleep, it started looking like a pond where I found myself staring at my own reflection.
I remember how I felt when my son and daughter were born – each an overwhelming experience when my purpose has been recalled. I remember the times of challenges – the moments I failed and the moments I overcame.
With my Dad’s date of birth in October and All Saints Day has just gone by, I also remembered the deep sorrow my whole family were subjected to due to his loss.
All these moments being played like a movie, an oasis of feeling flowing through then I got distracted by the fire detector, taking me back to my initial thought – “what is the meaning of life?”
I read something that “life is a series of failures punctuated by brief successes.” I’m assuming the author wants to emphasize that life is not perfect but as usual I have my own spin on this.
To me, life is about your journey – about the world around you, how you see your purpose, how you discover your significance and how you use this wisdom.
You start your journey as a child getting to know who you can trust, understanding how things work, recognizing your limits, discovering your skills, finding what motivates you and then for some, figuring out what all these mean, why you’re here and why things happen the way they do.
Your arrogant theory that “you know everything” during your early adulthood gradually proven wrong as you come across various difficulties. There are times when you are exposed to fear, rejection, mistakes, pain and humiliation. Then as you grow old, you intend to pass on the wisdom to the next generation with full conviction. On the other hand, some see life as a punishment opting for an easy way out while others see life as a gift.
We all get overjoyed by [a] baby’s birth, new career, new love life, new house, new skill/s, travel or new adventures because it’s a mark of a new beginning, which some people claim as “new LIFE.”
On the other hand we feel lost, upset and/or get devastated by the loss of loved ones, leaving home and family to migrate to another location, loss of job or property and fear to accept rejection. The thoughts of regret and “what if’s” cross one’s mind convinced LIFE could have been better, “if only.”
But is life only about new beginnings? Is life defined only by successes? Is it about “If only”? Or is life about you?
Marriage is not forever, love is. So if people find marriage as a new beginning or consider it as one of their successes, then what do you call it when it fails?
After 15 minutes of getting familiar with our down lights I concluded, that life is not just about new starts, happiness, successes or survival of the fittest. It is about learning from the lessons life has [given] and yet to give. With a newborn, life is not just about the baby. It is about how we co-exist; what the child learns from us and the world around him or her; what we learn from our own children as they grow; and what we learn about ourselves in the process. It is how we define ourselves amidst the daily challenges; how we pull our courage in the face of fear; how we become stronger in our low moments; how we find patience during frustrating challenges; or how we create a positive experience in the centre of powerful critics. Life is about the wisdom we extract from each experience. Life for me is not about myself but learning about myself. Life is how I live life.
For me, to find myself knowing where I fit and what’s my significance to God’s plan, to my family, society and humanity is the most rewarding way to live life. How can one start a business or play a game without knowing the goal/s, the rules, your limitations and strengths? It would be like running around like a headless chicken lost in mixed priorities and weak strategies.
The way I see it, life is about knowing who I am, learning my lessons and having the ability to apply that wisdom. By this, I can be happy, successful and also fail again so I can continue improving, growing and finally bear my fruit of wisdom and legacy.
Bless you are astounding. Remarkable how at young age, you acquired wisdom just like King Solomon’s gift, certainly to give others the empowerment to continue on with their life’s purpose. Bless you.