The Humble Submission of One’s Ego--Natalia

 

Every human is a unique, morally distinct being, yet insignificant in the most grandiose way. Most seem unaware of the universe’s indifference toward not only our individual but our collective existence. The delusion that we hold some privileged place among the stars is humbly dismantled by the realization of the true scale of reality. As a young child, I was always skeptical about the world, specifically how I came to even be in my house and be in my body. I had come up with my own theory, that I was a doll in a dollhouse and someone was in control of all my movements. However, at those times I lacked perspective and had little understanding of not only the world but all that is outside of it. Up until a few years ago, I did not question much about anything, it was easier to say “everything happens for a reason” and forget about whatever happened. I’ve grown out of that mindset (kinda) and now have stamped in my head the idea that life lacks inherent meaning and, in an existential sense, when confronted with the scale of the universe, human existence dissolves into complete irrelevancy.

As scary as these ideas might be, it’s important for the individual to confront them to truly grow. The realization of how minuscule humanity truly is is one that most seem to avoid encountering. However, consider the following: There are an estimated ten thousand times as many stars in the cosmos as there are grains of sand on the planet earth. To which the following question can be posed: If I were to go to the beach and remove a single grain of sand, then come back the next day, would it feel like a different beach? I’m sure many have heard of this analogy but many have also not comprehended the massive scale on which our existence plays a

microscopic role in terms of everything outside of our planet. To put humanity’s scale in a temporal sense into perspective, “there once was a star in which clever animals invented knowledge. That was the highest and most mendacious minute of “world history”-- yet only a minute.”. On the scale of a year-long cosmic calendar, modern humans have barely been around for a single minute. For all we know one day the sun will die and we will die and nothing will ever change again. That’s literally it.

It’s completely understandable that one might experience a sensation of existential dread after confronted with these ideas. However, when examined from a different perspective, this nihilism can actually be perceived as more optimistic. For example, if life has no inherent meaning or purpose, then it sets the individual free to dictate their own purpose in life. After all, your life is the only chance you’ll ever get to truly live. Your life is all you get to experience, so then it's the only thing that matters. We get the privilege of being here and experiencing the universe, right before our eyes. Life is not about death, it’s about living, just as the point of a song is not the end of the song. You don't wait for three minutes just to hear the last crashing chord. The point of life is being present in the now and living every moment to its fullest. Don’t stress over something that won’t affect you in the future. Worrying about what others might think of you is a waste of time, honestly, people are concerned more with themselves than you. And at the end of the day it doesn’t matter what one person thinks, everyone perceives you differently, therefore more than one version of “you” exists in the minds of everyone you know, no one really knows the full you, only you do. So go do whatever you want, do something a little risky (as long as it won’t hurt you in the future) a little adrenaline doesn’t hurt, don’t be shy to try something new, do what you need to do to make yourself happy, but without harming others.

Cosmically speaking, we are tiny. Cosmically speaking, we are a whisper in the dark. Cosmically speaking, we are fragments, dust particles, the smallest of atom formations. Cosmically speaking, we are unshielded. There is nothing but a thin atmosphere between us and the stars and the black holes and the solar flares. We are part of this enormous whole and barely kept from leaping off our own planet. Domestically speaking, we are young, and a part of this universe. Cosmically speaking we are the thing that makes the universe exist at all as it observes itself.