The Meaning of Life
In the context of Life Therapy Education, the meaning of life is fourfold. Life is a condition, a time period, a story, and an animating force.
The Meaning of Life as a Condition
Wonder of wonders! Mystery of mysteries! You are alive rather than not! Take in the profound mystery of the mere fact that you are alive and be wondered by it!
You are alive at this time, in this place, and you are not alone. You are alive and connected with all other living beings.
Your condition of being alive varies from day to day. Some days you feel more alive than on other days. That’s normal. Your condition also varies due to the hurtful experiences that wounded you. Regardless of how alive you feel from day to day, you are alive, and you are not alone.
You are alive because your parents gave you life and brought you into this world. Prior to your parents every one of your ancestors contributed to you being alive. Beyond your ancestors, everything that preceded your birth made your birth necessary. You’re still alive because everything that preceded this moment has kept you alive.
You aren’t just rare. You are one of a kind. Like a meteor, you only happen once. You are a unique, once-in-forever, here-and-gone human being of inestimable worth.
Your life is too wonderful to take for granted. Never again take your life or anyone else’s for granted—human or otherwise. Be wondered by this mere fact: you are alive and you are not alone!
The Meaning of Life as a Time Period
Life is the time from your birth and first breath to your last breath and death. You’re now living the time of your life. The time of your life takes you through one or all of the phases of birth, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, senescence, and dying.
You don’t know how much time you have. No one does. You could die any moment: today, tomorrow, or later. That you don’t know how much time you have means that you have no time to waste. Every moment matters. Your lifetime is far too valuable to waste.
We all need you to have the time of your life and use your time well. Use your time to live the life only you can. We all need you to live the best life you can.
Living your best life involves knowing the life-affirming desires of your heart and realizing your dream and joy. When you do that, you live the time of your life and make the whole world more wonderful.
The Meaning of Life as a Story
Your life is a story. It’s represented by the dash between the date of your birth and date of your death. You only get one chance to live your life. You received no script to follow. You had no rehearsal. You never know what a day will bring. Your only option is to improvise the story of your life.
We’re all improvising. We’re all making up our life stories as we go. As you improvise your life you are creating your self. Your self is not something inside you. Neither is it something you find. Your self is a story you are creating as you live each day of your life. You have no self apart from your life story. When you know your life story, you know yourself.
If you suffer from amnesia and can’t remember your life story, you don’t know who you are. Likewise, when others know your life story, they know your self. When they forget your story, they forget who you are.
As the creator of your improvised life-story, you are the main character. All others play secondary or lesser roles. Some support you. Others oppose you. Still others are just part of the scenes you’re in. And all are necessary.
The Purpose of Your Life
Even though you’re improvising your life story, you do have guidance. It’s inside you. The life-affirming desires of your heart guide you. They guide you in fulfilling the purpose of your life.
The purpose of your life is to realize your dream and joy. Let nothing stop you from knowing the life-affirming desires of your heart and realizing your dream and joy.
That’s what you’re here to do. We all need you to do that. When you fulfill the life-affirming desires of your heart and realize your dream and joy, you make the whole world more wonderful!
The Meaning of Life as an Animating Force
You have life in you. The life in you is a natural, animating force that makes and keeps you alive. Ancient Greeks called this natural, life-giving force thumos. Romans translated that into Latin as spiritus. In English, it’s called spirit. It’s what makes and keeps everything alive.
Because you are spirited, you are alive. However, you are alive for a limited time. During your limited time, you are creating your life story and self as you go. So, know this about your human spirit: It makes and keeps you alive. It’s also the source of your inherent aspirations toward life, health, and the happiness of realizing your dream and joy.
Its instincts drive you to do what keeps you alive: eat, drink, work, stay safe, rest, and sleep. Emotions are up-stirrings of your human spirit. Your emotions inform you about what you are experiencing and fuel your responses.
For example, fear informs you that you’re unsafe and fuels your response to keep yourself safe. Anger informs you that you’ve been wronged and fuels your response to set things straight. Sadness informs you of an undesired loss and fuels your response to withdraw and grieve.
Your human spirit is your wise inner guardian and guide. It’s the source of your wordless inner-knowing. You’re always glad when you heed it, and regret when you ignore it.
Your human spirit is also the seat of your character. Influenced by your ancestors and others, your character might be sweet, kind, cold, happy, melancholic, bold, fierce, or otherwise.
The Wonder and Mystery of Your Life
Wonder of wonders! Mystery of mysteries! You are spirited! You are alive and improvising your life-story for a limited time. And you are a once-in-forever, here-and-gone human being of inestimable worth. We all need you to realize your dream and joy and make the whole world more wonderful!