THE Meaning
by Olivia
Thinking about graduation and graduate school and all of this also has me thinking about the grander purpose of life.
Right now my main focus is to graduate college with my bachelor’s, get a job where I can provide for myself, be able to accumulate wealth for my more distant future (read retirement). I have *many* other goals and plans, but this pretty much sums up all of my immediate goals and my long-term goals, put together.
But what after this? What *during* this, even?
Okay, let’s say, in a perfect world, I graduate with perfect cridentials for a good graduate program and I get a MA and a PhD and get a good position at a university. Or whatever. Whatever I end up doing. That’s my goal right now, but that *may* change – who knows. Let’s say I have a job and I’m supporting myself and I have my own place to live and all of this, just to keep things general, then.
Now what?
Now what?
The obvious answer, to me, is that with each goal reached, more new goals are spawned and those new goals are likely to “take over” and become what gives life meaning. Just as my education right now seems to give my life meaning.
So maybe there is never, or at least *very rarely* a time in life when all needs and goals are met and there doesn’t seem to be much else to do. It’s said that a lot of people only look for the meaning of their life at times of great turmoil. I’ve never found that to be true for myself. For whatever reason, I notice that I’m pretty much just the opposite: I look into the meaning of life when things are going well or at times like this, obviously.
For some people the meaning and wholesomeness is provided by religion. For others it’s family. Others, it’s friends.
I don’t know what the answer is and to be honest, I’m not too too concerned about it right now, although perhaps I should be. I don’t know! I just don’t know. And as much as they’d like to think they do, none of the people who fall into the categories I mentioned about really *know* either. So nobody knows.
But somehow, if you’re not going to die feeling like a *total* waste of . . . life, we each at least have to find what makes the most sense to us. I don’t know what that is for me, yet. I have some general ideas of possibilities I plan to pursue and see where they go, but my guess is that it’s not just one thing, but a nice little combination, or package of different things that “matter”. I’m sure it changes throughout a person’s lifetime, also.
This happens much too often. Suddenly I’ve lost interest in talking about this anymore.
Bye!
Goals will change as you go through the journey. This does not mean failure it is just part of the journey. It is going through the journey in sincerity and doing the best you can at each step that really matters. Life’s answers do bring more questions and journeys it is to keep going in caring compassion and creativity that really matters. If that is not the case then I am the greatest of failures. For what have I the person who once had a great career and long marriage ahead of him. I am the creativty and compassion that exists in my relationships or I am nothing at all.