EpilogueA Chapter by PaulFinal section of The Me PrimerEpilogue
When I am starved the meaning of life is to eat. When I am
exhausted the meaning of life is to rest. When I am aroused the meaning of life
is to have sex. When I am physically content the meaning of life is a great
mystery to be solved. The mind becomes content or volatile depending on the
solution to this mystery. My imagination will not stop in the case of either.
My imagination will work to remain content, or volatile, pursuing the
particular understanding of the meaning of life that has been formed; sometimes
even if I again become starved or exhausted or aroused. This is the power of
imagination. When
I don’t know all of the answers there is always a leap of faith necessary. For
me it has become faith in the scientific method, even when an answer does not
seem possible. I want science to have answers that are absolute, right now. I
want science to be magical. I must recognize that science cannot always be
positive of the finality of answers. This is because of a lack of facts, or our
inability to properly interpret facts, but I have faith that science is our
most consistent tool for discovering. In the past, if I wanted answers, I turned to magic. My faith was put in supernatural elements that gave me absolutes. The magic may not have given me all the answers but it gave me reasons why some things had to remain a mystery. It gave me confidence that if I did “this” now, then I would get “that” later. I now have confidence that, as part of the natural world, I can discover which human inventions work best for me. I know now that I need to be confident in my life as an animal. This can seem to be a life of uncertainty and so I give it some certainty by controlling the things that I can control, like my behavior. I control my behavior in the hope that others will control their behavior. I would like to have only facts to support my ideas for how best to do this, as an individual, in a society, but at times I take a leap based on what seems the best choice. I examine the consequences of each possible action and discover which choice will be best for individual, human-animals. I do this because I am an individual, human-animal. My ideas about specifics can be wrong, they can be skewed and silly, but my premise will not be, it is fool proof: I am an individual and I am only satisfied when I can meet my individual needs. This even works for those who believe that group or family needs should be the priority. Their individual need, to satisfy the needs of the group, can be satisfied. I believe that I am an animal living
in the natural world. A world where good and evil are subjective terms, where right
and wrong only have power in an accepted code of conduct. It then becomes a
question of what is best. What is best for the most individuals to feel safe
living their individual lives? I believe it is best to tolerate other
individuals satisfying their needs, so that they will tolerate me satisfying my
needs. I am an animal I don’t believe I could ever understand myself if I did not
know this. It can be argued that my brain is bigger relative to my body than in
other animals. It can be argued that I have greater capacity for creative
thought. This does not change the fact that I have an animal brain that
functions and is driven like every animal brain. Giraffes have a very long,
very strong neck but fundamentally it works in the same way that my neck does. my evolutionary advantage is imagination Not a pretty phrase I know but it is
necessary to state this way. The poet in me wants to make this a line of
lyrical beauty but I know that its real meaning would get lost in prettier
words. The human brain has evolved biologically, allowing for increased thought
process, while my brain has evolved to the point where its foundational desires
are almost unrecognizable. I am aware that science is learning more and more
about how other animals also are creative. I believe that science will always
find that the human animal has a brain that cannot be matched when it comes to
imagination. My brain has taken the simplest
desires/ feelings and made them into great webs of thought, for better and for
worse. I create to survive My creativity is the advantage. What I lack in speed
and strength I make up for in creating new reactions to survive every day.
Creating refers to any idea beyond the most basic animal instincts but
recognizes that my eventual creation is just a mutation, or many mutations, of
the same instincts that all animals have. I have imagined them differently and
it has helped me and my ancestors survive. capable of wonderful things Wonderful is of course subjective and
anyone can imagine scenarios or search history for the details and awful things Awful is of course subjective and anyone can imagine
scenarios or search history for the details I imagine there is a better way to do wonderful things This is what I feel called to do. To
define wonderful for myself as that which lets individuals thrive in private
and expect tolerance in public. No other animal has to do this. I do not expect
others to have to follow this path unless they also choose to look for a way
that is most beneficial to maintaining individual freedom. I believe this is
necessary for human happiness. Having made such a choice I do not need to
insist that people seek more than the satisfaction of their animal instincts. I
do not need to insist that they forego their magical beliefs. I will insist
that they abide by the rules of a society, in which they are safe to fulfill
their desires, or find somewhere to exercise their individuality that does not
adversely impact other individuals. I am an animal I don’t believe I could ever understand myself if I did not
know this... © 2024 Paul |
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Added on April 24, 2017 Last Updated on October 30, 2024 AuthorPaulAboutI am writing in the Mid Atlantic area of the United States, mostly non-fiction at this time. I am a song writer as well. http://songsongsongs.com Also of interest could be- http://bookstore.trafford... more..Writing
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