1 Corinthians 13

"For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known."

Nothing in existence has yet to understand itself completely, as far as we know. We can assume that if there's any intelligent life out there that has it would have been all over the universe before it reached this level, and at least left a mark, or by now it's left and with it's total understand covered up all traces.

Reality's but a short dream. Imagine God's spent his life staring at a wavy lake trying to see his own reflection. He has to light it to see it, so clouds form to obscure parts of it and it rains and the water's never still. Sometimes rocks get thrown at it's surface and earthquakes hit and the water gets rougher yet. We are like the tiny short - lived beams of light that make it back to his eye, some shining more brightly and clearly than others.

Except there is no proven God, we've only got ourselves, our own idealised image, and the universe as we currently understand it. We can't see completely what we're made of, what we inhabit, or even how we work, or even fundamentally how the universe works. Everytime we've come closer we realise the truth's gotten a bit further. Just before the 20th century many scientists thought science was coming to an end, and that we'd already almost discovered everything. Then we realised there's atoms and quantum mechanics under that. Which in some ways is unpredictable, because we don't know how the mechanics that make quantum mechanics operate operate. and so on.

The most frustrating thing about being alive is that i know that i'll always basically be an infant. Babbling nonsense to other infants about a world which is impossible to understand with such a relatively (to the universe) tiny and simple brain. I'll live as an infant for 70 years then die an infant. I'll be struggling for a place here, for some understanding and peace. I'm doomed to constantly experience an existential crisis, to which the only cure is boredom. What a sad and silly thing it is to be alive as an individual human being.

The only hope I have is to live only for others, and to function as an important cell in the growing organism that is humanity. Maybe we can still that pool yet. I'll just shine on.

 

Posted Wednesday, 22 July 2009 at 03:50