More On Meaning and Life

A note from my dearest friend contained a link to a story about a photo left on the moon. It was intended as a long term monument, of sorts, to the astronaut's family. The note from my dearest added, "Man, I wish I could do something like this before I die."

You can see the story here ... What you are seeing is the picture Charles Duke left on the moon. This image is not from today but was taken with another camera and brought back to earth. Despite the implications of the article, that photo would no longer exist and hasn't existed for decades.

Ultraviolet radiation destroys the dyes that make up photos as well as anything written. Even here on the earth, we have to take steps to preserve photos: They are kept out of sunlight and (at least artwork quality photos) are kept under UV glass away from direct light of any kind. On the moon, ultraviolet radiation is hundreds of times stronger than here on the earth. That photo probably didn't last a year.

Yet most of us feel that burning desire expressed by my friend - frequently kept to ourselves - that our lives might have some deeper, broader significance than this all-too-brief span. The thought that our little flame of existence is so short and - once extinguished - will not have mattered one bit is in many ways the ultimate dread. In other words, we fear that our lives are meaningless.

It is true that little or nothing that we make with our hands will survive for long and that our most prized possessions will turn to dust just like that photo. What we actually leave behind, however, is the influence we've had on others. That influence may be as direct and immediate as our children, but we've known and influenced others as well, touching lives without awareness with consequences we cannot comprehend. The little differences we make may go unnoticed, the work of our existence may remain unseen, yet the influence is there. Those we have changed in our little ways also go on to influence others' lives - and so it goes.

You see, whether we realize it or not, we are here because of the actions and influences of people who came before us, most of whom we never knew: Not only our direct ancestors but also non-relatives who made the lives of our ancestors what they were. Thus our existence is owed to thousands upon thousands who lived and died in anonymity yet who created our world as it is.

Likewise, there will be future generations who will never know us whose lives will nevertheless be what they are because we were once here, and we did stuff.

So our lives, however we live them, will echo down through generations and even the least among us will cast a long shadow into the future. That must be enough.



"Reason has seldom failed us because it has seldom been tried." Edward Abbey

My Basic Guidebook for Life

I've been tinkering with finishing my book, as many of you know... I don't know if I will ever get it done or not. And really, does it matter?

In the meantime, here are 20 reality checks based on 'If you Meet the Buddha on the Road, Kill Him' by Sheldon Kopp. Starting with the original list, I have excerpted the salient points and added my own take on it all....

20 Reality Checks

1. This is it. I know you were expecting more from your life and that you have big dreams. Everyone feels that way but they still end up having to live in the real world where dreams are seldom more than just that.


2. There are no hidden meanings. There is probably a lot of stuff you don't know - about why things are the way they are. But when you find out, the answers will turn out to be every bit as mundane and prosaic as the stuff you already know.


3. We are already dying, and we'll be dead a long time. If you aren't living here and now, living in the moment, living what-is, you are not alive.


4. Nothing lasts! Life changes like the weather; sometimes slow, sometimes fast, but always it changes. And all things come to an end.
   


5. There is no way of getting all you want. If you get what you now crave, there will just be another thing that you have to have.


6. There is no particular reason why you lost out on some things. Life proves over and over again that success comes partly from hard work and partly from luck, despite the desire of successful people to attribute their success to their own moral superiority. The reality check here is that you must accept the fact that success in life is like a sweepstakes; your hard work and dedication is your entry fee ...then there is a random drawing.


7. The world is not necessarily just. Being good often does not pay off and there's no compensation for misfortune.


8. You have the responsibility to do your best nonetheless. Remember that you are the product of ten thousand generations - people who lived and struggled and died, yet somehow succeeded in life else you would not be here. So in honor of their efforts, your best is the least you can do.


9. It's a random universe to which we bring meaning. Meanings and beliefs about meanings are held with great fervency by billions of people - each one completely assured in their minds that they have the true answers. Nevertheless, my meaning may not be your meaning. Just accept that.


10. You really don't control anything.


11. You can't make anyone love you.


12. There are no truly great men. Anyone may be 'great' or awful, depending on circumstances. Hitler could have been a famous painter. Time, place and circumstances make heroes and villains.


13. Everyone lies, cheats, pretends. (yes, you too, and most certainly myself.) It is human nature. Try to follow the Golden Rule and treat others as you would wish to be treated - and don't be surprised if they fail to reciprocate.


14. Progress is an illusion. Things get better for a while, and then they get worse for a while. Learn history and you will see that this is true.


15. Evil can be displaced but never eradicated, as all solutions breed new problems.


16. We have only ourselves, and one another. That may not be much, but that's all there is.


17. All important decisions must be made on the basis of insufficient data, yet we are responsible for everything we do.


18. All significant battles are waged within oneself.


19. If you begin to feel like your life has a special, Divine purpose and that you have been Chosen by God to perform a great task; consider having yourself committed to a mental institution before you hurt someone. This is the path of horror and destruction; from Stalin, Hitler and Mao to Charles Manson and Timothy McVey - they all firmly believed themselves to be God's chosen instrument and all left ruin in their wake as a result.
    


20. That said, you are free to do whatever you like. You need only face the consequences.

The Verdict From Corvallis

The judgment is in; I will not be a featured artist at the Corvallis fair. Oh well. It's pretty much their loss and a mixed blessing. For me, there isn't a lot of money in this sort of thing. It's about a break-even proposition, only done for exposure. For them... well, they missed out on the most entertaining art show they COULD have had.

General Web and Life Updates

As usual for this time of year, I'm juggling a few things at once. I don't know yet if I will be performing at the Corvallis art fair or not but I should hear something in a few days.

In the meantime, I've pulled out the pastels after all this time and have done a couple of little landscapes. Nothing exciting but at least doing them made me feel good.

I'm also trying to get back to practicing quick face drawing so I can do more live events. It's hard when I don't have a lot of free subjects wandering around, though. It's just not the same working from photographs.

AND, as you may have noticed, I've completely revised the look and feel of my blogs - well, half of them anyway. Hopefully it will make things easier to find. Let me know if you like the new look.

UFO Festival Parade

Storm troopers

Alien Gummie Bears

Right next to my spot at the festival.

Old folding Apache

It's a 1970's era folding camp trailer. It is so cheap that I'm tempted but it's also pretty beat-up.