The Grand Question

Of the billions of people on this planet what makes us unique? Why were we blessed with the gift life? What are we meant to achieve?

      What is our purpose on Earth?

      These questions have puzzled humans for as long as we have existed. And it troubles us to not know the real answer. No matter how hard we search there is no way to know for sure what the right answer is. We can all have our different hypotheses, but there's no real way to attain proof.

Does Our Purpose Change Through Time?

While I can't speak on behalf of the aspirations and goals of people in prehistoric times, I have reasons to believe our sense of purposes differed greatly. Evolution changes our proposed purpose in life... And I don't think it always changes in a good way.

       Looking back at cavemen, I'm sure they didn't hold the same purpose we do today. Their main purpose was to survive, to live another day. With the creation of capitalism, economy and materialistic accomplishments, we've lost this most basic sense of purpose. To find meaning in the simplicity of simply living.

      We're determined to seek a greater purpose on life, as if we can't just live to be alive.

       We've been conditioned to seek a purpose, to make our life meaningful in the eyes of society. Society has essentially created a list of expectations, instilled certain beliefs in past and present generations, that certain markers have to be met to live a fulfilling and purposeful life.

       Financial success. Meaningful career. True love. Marriage. Beautiful home. Children... For so long, these were expectations. We were made to feel unfulfilled without these proposed milestones.

       We've spent so long just doing what we're told to do. Following a life path established by someone else's expectations.

     It took me a long time to realize, that a lot of the goals I had set, stemmed not from my own desires and passions, but rather stemmed from what I believed was expected of me.

      I chose an education and career that society deemed noble. Chose a career to would guarantee financial success, that would guarantee I appeared successful and put together in society's eyes.

       "The purpose of life is to live it." - Clarence Darrow

       There doesn't have to be any grander explanation than that. We are born to live. We write our own destinies. There is no rule book on what we must and must not achieve in our lives.

      "Happiness is the meaning and purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence." - Aristotle. 

Conclusion

With this in mind, I've realized that my purpose in life is simply to enjoy it. It is to learn to transform surviving into living, and that means learning to enjoy the achievement of my basic needs. It means to stop seeing cooking an elaborate meal or sleeping as a waste of time or barrier to production.

      I want to publish a book.

     I want to raise a family in my dream home.

     I want to travel the world.

     I want to make a difference in people's lives.

       And you bet I will do everything in my power to live those dreams. But I don't need to live them, to have lived a purposeful life. Want and need are two very different things. So let me rephrase that first sentence. I will do everything in my power to achieve those goals, but not at the expense of myself. Not at the expense of my physical or mental health.

      The most meaningful part of chasing your dreams, should rest in the knowledge of having the courage to dream big and get back up when you fall. Your real purpose rests in the journey of your achievements.

      It's not what you achieve, but how you achieve it.

      It doesn't matter if I never publish a book. The mere fact that I made time to pursue my passion, that I loved myself enough to give my dreams a chance, is in what I will hold significance.

      Find purpose in every single thing you do. There is purpose in even the smallest things. Your life will not be wasted if you don't get to achieve certain things.

      Find purpose in the simplicity of living. Find purpose in your journey. In your journey of self-love. In your journey of self-discovery, and in the journey of the pursuit of your dreams.

      There's not set purpose to our lives. Live the life you want to live. That's all we're meant to do.