What is the purpose of life? -- Week 15

I just laughed to myself when typing the title of my reflection post this week. It looks like an ironic semester-ending joke satirizing the idea of these reflection posts, and although it probably should be, its not: I really want to discuss the meaning of life in this post.

After our last reading, I had the opportunity to reflect on the idea of human nature and the implications of our semester on the idea of "eat or be eaten". After talking with Xandra this week, we came to an agreement that although perfection is impossible to reach, and that believing in the goodness of society or its potential to break the power-atrocity complex is naive, there is a solution in how to go about our lives. If we knowingly allow ourselves to be idealistic in a way, and work tirelessly to improve something in the world, its possible for us to make a positive shift, no matter how small. Each choice we make in our lives, each failure, each success -- they all seem to matter so much to us... but reality is that our lives are so insignificant in the grand scheme of the universe. While this could be a discouraging and self-defeating statement, it is also freeing in a way. The power that one gets when they zoom out and put all of that which is known to them in perspective is a dangerous one to wield and has led many educated people to suicide.

Despite this, I believe that this power of perspective can also be incredibly beneficial. It reminds me of a story I once heard from my Rabbi during Rosh Hashannah (Jewish New Year) services. I found a version online (https://www.cityyear.org/about-us/culture-values/founding-stories/starfish-story) and included it here:
"A young girl was walking along a beach upon which thousands of starfish had been washed up during a terrible storm. When she came to each starfish, she would pick it up, and throw it back into the ocean. People watched her with amusement. 

She had been doing this for some time when a man approached her and said, “Little girl, why are you doing this? Look at this beach! You can’t save all these starfish. You can’t begin to make a difference!” The girl seemed crushed, suddenly deflated. But after a few moments, she bent down, picked up another starfish, and hurled it as far as she could into the ocean. Then she looked up at the man and replied, “Well, I made a difference to that one!” 

The old man looked at the girl inquisitively and thought about what she had done and said. Inspired, he joined the little girl in throwing starfish back into the sea. Soon others joined, and all the starfish were saved."

While the ending of this story is a little corny or idealistic, the message really hit home for me and I think it captures a lot about why each one of us was put on this planet.

To extend this to my current situation, a college student with aspirations for the future, working day by day to make something of my life, is important. I have to remember that while my current grades, relationships, habits, health, etc will affect my future dramatically, I shouldn't be afraid to take risks and think about things in the context of what will A) make the world a better place and B) make myself and others happier in our own lives, rather than each and every small thing in life. 

So, I know that this post wasn't a revolutionary world-changing answer to the eternal question, "What is the purpose of life?", but I think that it explains a little bit that could give any one of us control over our own purposes and a sense of calculated, cautious optimism about the future.