Life makes zero sense: how we got here, what we’re meant to do—it all makes absolutely no sense. We’re all thrust into a life we didn’t choose, taught different ways to see the world and what to do with it. We’re often taught to see endings as failures. In a world where everyone will eventually meet an end, it’s natural to wonder why we’re even here in the first place. At some point, everyone must face the uncomfortable reality that someday, most of us will be forgotten. Our memories will fade, names will be forgotten and eventually even the people we knew will be gone as well.
Taking all this into account, it’s hard not to wonder: what is the purpose of life if it all ends the same way? Some will say it’s to make an impact, leave a change, but I believe that no matter how hard we try, most of us will fail at this and be forgotten. I know that sounds extremely dull and negative, but it’s true. So instead of spending your life trying to make others appreciate you, spend it on yourself.
Life is a temporary thing and people always want to find permanence and security which can be frustrating when nothing in life is permanent. Your relationships are always shifting, lives unraveling and changing forms, even the body that you’re stuck with changes and grows, sometimes in ways we don’t like.
Although the brevity of life can cause people to wonder if life is worth living, it’s important to keep in mind that even if nobody will remember you when they’re gone and the world might not feel your impact, a lot of people will. To the individuals you meet, you may be the brightest spark in their day or even their life, a reason they feel their life is worth living and even if you don’t leave a change in the world, and your name isn’t whispered for generations to come, you can have the biggest and most meaningful impact on someone you meet once or someone you spend a lifetime with.
The purpose of life is different for everybody. It can be finding a connection with another person for life, growing into a person you’re satisfied with, or it can just be living life to the fullest every day. Life isn’t about how fast and how loudly you make it to the finish line, it’s about making sure that when you reach that finish line you know you have done and said everything you wanted to. It can be sad to think about being forgotten but it can also be comforting to know that this life is for you, no one else, and you are allowed to fill it with anything you desire no matter what other people want or say.
If life was a never ending cycle, it wouldn’t be special to love someone or even to lose someone. Acknowledging that you’re only here for a short period of time allows every moment to feel ten times more important and every day to feel special. In a universe where nothing truly matters or lasts, meaning doesn’t come from being remembered, it comes from being present while we’re here.
From choosing how we treat others and spend our time even if no one ever notices. Perhaps what we were meant to do was never to try and be remembered, maybe it was simply to be present wherever you are, love where you can and then let go because meeting an end is not always a failure, sometimes it’s a freedom.
