{"id":243,"date":"2009-11-09T22:54:48","date_gmt":"2009-11-10T05:54:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?p=243"},"modified":"2009-11-10T09:14:09","modified_gmt":"2009-11-10T16:14:09","slug":"life-a-perspective","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?p=243","title":{"rendered":"Life: A perspective"},"content":{"rendered":"\t

If we are to believe science<\/strong>, we are an accident of the cosmos, which is itself an accident.\u00a0 That’s a pretty big happenstance.<\/p>\n\t

If we are to believe religion<\/strong>, the entire cosmos exists so that we can pass a few years on a lonely planet in a common galaxy in an unimaginably large universe….trying to prove that we believe that some guy who lived only 2,000 years ago was at the same time human and the son of a supreme being.<\/p>\n\t

Neither is particularly plausible; though one improves our life, while the other causes as many problems as it solves.<\/p>\n\t

“Why did you do all this for me?” he asked. “I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done anything for you.”\u00a0 “You have been my friend,” replied Charlotte. “That in itself is a tremendous thing. I wove my webs for you because I liked you. After all, what’s a life, anyway? We’re born, we live a little while, we die<\/strong>… By helping you, perhaps I was trying to lift up my life a trifle. Heavens knows anyone’s life can stand a little of that.”\u00a0 — Charlotte’s Web<\/p>\n\t

We’re born, we live a little while, we die.<\/strong><\/p>\n\t

If you never read anything else, but understood that…I think it would be enough.\u00a0 Children’s books are funny like that.<\/p>\n\t

As we get older, we always think we understand things better than we did before, and we do….for what it is worth.\u00a0 And I think it is worth not much.<\/p>\n\t

When I was younger I enjoyed my lack of understanding, and I never could’ve born the weight of my life now (not that it is that bad).\u00a0 Youth is good.<\/p>\n\t

I am older and though youth leaves me, my ability to deal with my current life is a great skill.\u00a0 Age is good.<\/p>\n\t

So there.<\/p>\n\t

“I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happens to them all.<\/strong>”\u00a0 — Ecclesiastes 9:11<\/span><\/p>\n\t

<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\t

I have come to an agreement with life that allows me to bear it:<\/p>\n\t

Life promises me nothing.<\/strong> My very best efforts may well lead to failure.\u00a0 I could betray my family, my friends could hate me, my marriage could fail, I could beat small, cute animals….there is always some set of circumstance that will make you do what you didn’t think you would.\u00a0 Judge if you’d like; today it is someone else, tomorrow it is you.\u00a0 “….time and chance happens to them all”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\t

Should I complain that my parents don’t like each other, that I don’t get along with my dad, that I work most weekends, that I have a freak injury that keeps me from playing a sport that is one of my sole stress releases, that my best friends all live relatively far away, that my mother complains to me about her crappy life, my sister (bless her heart) borders on histrionic<\/a>, the family I’m marrying into has its own set of problems (which I now inherit), that my dog is dead (long live the Wizard!), my grandparents don’t even know who I am anymore, and I spend most of my free time attempting to learn about home repair so I can avoid paying some high school drop out more money per hour than I make with an MBA<\/em>?<\/p>\n\t

No.\u00a0 I shouldn’t.\u00a0 I am fucking thankful.<\/p>\n\t

Why?<\/p>\n\t

We’re born, we live a little while, we die. <\/strong><\/p>\n\t

Time and chance happens to them all.<\/strong><\/p>\n\t

We, my friends, are the winners <\/strong>(believe it or not).\u00a0 The loser are all dead.\u00a0 Be thankful.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If we are to believe science, we are an accident of the cosmos, which is itself an accident.\u00a0 That’s a pretty big happenstance. If we are to believe religion, the entire cosmos exists so that we can pass a few years on a lonely planet in a common galaxy in an unimaginably large universe….trying to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0},"categories":[10],"tags":[57],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3IMYj-3V","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":101,"url":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?p=101","url_meta":{"origin":243,"position":0},"title":"Greatness…","author":"kellio","date":"October 2, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"I had a consulting gig for work recently and got to see some pretty amazing sports memorabilia at a certain large sports apparel company's headquarters.\u00a0 This covered the entire wall. 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So what did I learn reading that article?\u00a0 Nothing that I didn't already know.\u00a0 Let's recap some happiness facts in no particular order: 1)\u00a0 Money makes you happier until you can pay for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Inside My Head"","block_context":{"text":"Inside My Head","link":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?cat=9"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":520,"url":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?p=520","url_meta":{"origin":243,"position":2},"title":"The problem with experts: We need them, but don’t know how to identify them.","author":"kellio","date":"January 20, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"As a consultant, I am a paid expert. What does it take to be an expert? A few things. \u00a0There is subject matter specific lingo\/vocabulary that experts use; if you know the lingo you somewhat self-identify as an expert. \u00a0Experts are sometimes published. \u00a0Experts know frameworks and the history of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"consulting\"","block_context":{"text":"consulting","link":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?tag=consulting"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":728,"url":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?p=728","url_meta":{"origin":243,"position":3},"title":"Why Ayn Rand was wrong","author":"kellio","date":"May 27, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"I've read a lot of her books: Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged, Anthem, We The Living, and also a few of the non-fiction works. \u00a0I found them inspiring and they've had an influence on my life. \u00a0And...I think she is mostly wrong regarding what our relationship should be with other people (which\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Stories\/Observations"","block_context":{"text":"Stories\/Observations","link":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?cat=11"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":256,"url":"http:\/\/chasingeden.com\/?p=256","url_meta":{"origin":243,"position":4},"title":"Reality Acceptance","author":"kellio","date":"November 11, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Basic assumptions are rarely questioned.\u00a0 One has to be pretty astute to even understand what the basic assumptions behind something are.\u00a0 If you don't know; you can't question.\u00a0 Even if you do, you have to be inclined to care. 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