Finding Meaning in My Life
This past year, when I scaled back from full-time employment, I found myself with a lot of time on my hands. I enjoyed the time to pursue my interests without worrying too much about the consequences of not fully investing into my retirement fund.
In fact, having to become frugal and to enjoy it became somewhat of a personal manifesto. Instead of using my car for errands, I used public transportation. I reduced my 'want' (it's not a 'need') to shop for new clothes, electronic devices or any such discretionary items. (I did miss having an employer-sponsored dental and medical plans, but for now, as long as I remain healthy, I can easily self-insure myself.) I started to think more about how I was living my life, the choices I made and my unfulfilled dreams.
Being single and childless, I didn't have another person in my life to project or validate these life decisions and wishes. Often times, I hear parents (mothers mostly, to be honest) say that their children provide them with self-fulfillment and meaning. There is an undeniable bond between mother and child. But, can one reduce the meaning of life so irreducibly to human relationships?
Is human connection the only meaning to life? As I spent this past year finding deep connections within me to create a stronger, more self-aware person, did I neglect another important aspect of life - creating bonds with others?
In fact, having to become frugal and to enjoy it became somewhat of a personal manifesto. Instead of using my car for errands, I used public transportation. I reduced my 'want' (it's not a 'need') to shop for new clothes, electronic devices or any such discretionary items. (I did miss having an employer-sponsored dental and medical plans, but for now, as long as I remain healthy, I can easily self-insure myself.) I started to think more about how I was living my life, the choices I made and my unfulfilled dreams.
Being single and childless, I didn't have another person in my life to project or validate these life decisions and wishes. Often times, I hear parents (mothers mostly, to be honest) say that their children provide them with self-fulfillment and meaning. There is an undeniable bond between mother and child. But, can one reduce the meaning of life so irreducibly to human relationships?
Is human connection the only meaning to life? As I spent this past year finding deep connections within me to create a stronger, more self-aware person, did I neglect another important aspect of life - creating bonds with others?
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