“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
What is the essence of who we are as a creature, a human being? The need for this self-knowledge shows up most clearly when we lose our identity when leaving a vocational position. The converse is not knowing who we are early in life, when we have not yet figured out what we want to be. We have not identified a “contribution,” and we flounder until we discover our place, as if our place determines our value. If this is true, then the vast majority of the world’s population has no opportunity to be of any value, for they have no opportunity to make a contribution.
Maybe this would explain cycles of hopelessness, even in our Canadian communities. We have undervalued the intrinsic value of each and every single human life. Every life has purpose, and every life can thrive on purpose. Let us not confuse ability and accomplishment with overall purpose, or we will have overlooked and forgotten the simple fact that the essence of life itself is a miracle.
The miracle of life should lead us to a place of questioning. It is ultimately important for us to discover where we came from (law of origins), where we are headed (final destination), and what we are to be or do given these “bookends” of our life”; where we came from, and where we end should have a lot to say about what we do in between. Stephen Covey states, “We must begin with the end in mind.” This, coupled with our law of origins, is the first principle we need to consider, so that we may avoid arriving at a final destination of regret.
Maybe we’ve been trying to write rules to a game we did not invent. Maybe we have been seeking fulfillment…without know what we are filling.
