Make Your Own Damn Meaning

I've finally arrived at the end of a course on Optimism and Pessimism which prompted me to continually think "deeply" about life for 16 weeks. After wrestling myself along the colorful spectrum between these two philosophical extremes (it's exhausting to feel Stoic one day and like Nietzsche the next), I've come to one firm conclusion, and that is about Love. Don't worry, this isn't your typical rant on the matter (that's what they all say).

At the end of a full semester of thinking about things, I concede to knowing nothing but what I feel. I concede to unreasonably believe in the mysterious, illogical entity we call Love and I concede to believing it makes this world go 'round. And frankly, I'm tired of all the people who are whining about the brokenness of the world but aren't trying to actively fix it, specifically by employing the means of Love.

Love is a thing of metaphysics, unlearn-able by the mind and knowable only by our human senses; and regardless of its intellectual intangibility it still remains a key player in the game of life, thus necessary to consider when discussing happiness and our will to live and act. If you're considering the state of your life (as I've been doing all semester), you can't avoid Love.

Love is capable of both greatness and horror. Love starts wars and Love ends wars. Love drives people mad and Love drives people to feed hungry strangers. It makes us want to die and to live, to create and procreate. The best thing about Love is that it's not restricted to anyone, in any country, economic class, or social circle, and we'll never be of short supply.

source: sparkyandmarie.com

Yes, Love is powerful, and it can create and destroy great things, including life itself. The Great Pessimists professed that it is only through art which we can escape the abysmal chaos of life. I say, Love is the retributive force behind such creation and escape. Our revolt against the seemingly meaningless nature of life is performed through acts of Love: Love for ourselves, for our loved ones, for our emotional experiences, for our connectedness to other people and things-- it all drives us to exert meaning onto the world through our creations.

Some think it's merely our plain unwillingness to surrender to the vacuum of supposed universal futility which drives us to create. 'I'd rather do something than nothing.' But I think it's less self-centered than that; otherwise there would be no such thing as altruism or sacrifice, there would be no continuous fight for existential answers; otherwise, those people who think our existence is only a petty rebellion against life's fruitlessness would all kill themselves instead of creating, instead of continuing to exist.

But not everyone kills themselves. Even the unhappiest of people persist. Why? Love. Our need for Love, our need to give it, our need to apply it to our abilities and to use it to realize action in the world, actions big and small. We do, we make, we live for Love. Love makes the world go 'round. 

All this babble ultimately begs the question: how are you helping to keep the world going 'round? Are you just trying to persist in life so as not to feel meaningless, just going to school and work and making frivolous purchases so that you can feel like life has significance? Are you absorbing the fruits of Love's labors but not recycling it back into the world? Or, are you forcing your own meaning into the world by actively living with reason, intent, and objective? Everyone's objective is ultimately happiness, and as Chris McCandless of Into The Wild wrote: Happiness is not real unless shared.

Don't live for happiness. Live for a happy world.

This post is for all the college grads and 20-somethings I've heard whining and complaining about not having a job, or not having a direction because the one society has given them isn't working out. The value of your degree, your job, and your life is a fabrication. You can choose to follow the fabricated values society has imposed on you or you can start creating your own value. Stop waiting for a job and go do something for the sake of doing it, for the sake of contributing to the world, for the sake of creation--for the sake of Love. Stop simply waiting for things to happen, while wallowing in a puddle of ego-induced anxiety, and get off your ass and carpe diem, kids.

Start your own project. Start your own business. Travel. Volunteer. Just don't waste any more time worrying and wondering if you'll ever have a house mortgage, health insurance, or something to boast about at your high school reunion. These are first-world people problems. You're going to die one day but the globe will keep spinning. Make yourself immortal by contributing something to the world. Make your life meaningful by creating.

Our economies are in the sewer. Our unemployment rates are devastating. Society has paved a road of expectations for you but now you feel lost. All we have is Love. Throw the map away and make your own direction.

Make your own damn meaning in the world.

 Brett Dennen: Ain't No Reason

Here are some awesome real-life examples of people (all friends of mine) who have made their own meanings in life through Love for their craft, for knowledge, for other people:


Alex Webb, 24: Alex is a self-taught micro-photographer studying biology and the history of science at California State University, Sacramento. Alex studies entomology (as well as a multitude of other relating subjects) on his own, which has enabled him to do awesome science things, like work at a local museum without his college degree yet, and attend a bug-snapping camp on scholarship. About a year after starting his micro-voyage, Alex was invited to be a part of research at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C.

http://www.microvoyages.net

Rachel Stroud, 24: Rachel graduated from Northwestern University in 2010. But in 2009 she started EditZING!, a "full-service editing and writing company with the aim of completing varied, professional and creative projects with breathtaking speed." Now, with a new husband, student loans, and a full-time job at a production company in Evanston, Illinois, Rachel continues her company as well as runs a sponsored yoga blog that's steadily growing in popularity.

www.aliveinthefire.blogspot.com

http://www.editzing.com

Zack Dougherty, 23: For as long as I've known Zack he's been driven to create, and specifically create his own source of income. Shortly after moving to Portland in 2010 (without a college degree), Zack founded Panoview Imaging. He is a one-man show that provides companies big and small with panoramic photography. In September he's headed to Germany to do a job. Zack's advantage, of course, is that he has the greatest girlfriend in the world who shares his love of photography and all things interesting and creative in the world (http://www.chackieee.blogspot.com).

http://panoviewimaging.com

Raphael Reuber, 33: Simply put, I can't expect everyone to be like my good German friend. If he wants to do something, he does it. If there is an obstacle facing him, he overcomes it. No money to take the kids from the orphanage surfing in South Africa? Why not just ask for help? And it's done. Raphael always finds a way to make things happen because he is fearless, resourceful, giving, honest, and persistent. He is a true example of how employing Love to carry out your actions can make motion in the world. He works full-time as a carpenter, spends holidays volunteering in other countries, and owns Daffy Boards. Check out his balance board company and his photos/videos of how his boards help surfers, skaters, and physical rehab patients from Germany to Morrocco.

http://daffy-boards.com

https://www.facebook.com/daffyboards

Angie Entwisle, 21: While simultaneously studying for a dual degree at the University of Nevada, Reno, Angie co-owns a company called Prestige Consignment. Faced with the same problem as most college students and 20-somethings (little to no job opportunities, mostly in the food and service industry, all requiring previous experience), Angie decided to do something other than spend three hours Facebook-stalking strangers. Angie creatively designed her own solution: a business that fills the needs of a small industry and its consumers, while bringing in enough cash for her to eat, live, study, and even play.

Hanna Linstadt, 22: Hanna has won a spot here for having a photo album online entitled: "Get a job? Oh, you mean go on a lot of trips! Ok!" After graduation, Hanna didn't have a job to jump right into, like so many college grads. She has spent the last few months traveling the world, getting real life education, broadening her mind, and becoming a global citizen. Yes, Hanna had some kind of means to make all this happen and you might be thinking, "but I don't!" First of all, some of you do and are still choosing to sit at home biting your nails in anticipation of the next life opportunity to hit you in the face. Those who don't have the obvious means to travel, don't just give up, Negative Nancy. Start saving your money and consider even taking one small trip. The point is to refocus your energy on something productive and stimulating that is good for your growth and for others, and to waste no more time obsessing over the status of your own life while you get buried under a pile of petty first world problems!