The One Thing

Watching Notre Dame burn, as carolers sing a song of mourning as perhaps the most beautiful thing I've witnessed in a while. The moment reminded me just how fragile everything really is, even things that seem timeless and immortal; are subject to tragedy just like everything else. It as it burned, this thought was seared into my mind.

That if you want to know who you really are, don’t ask yourself. Don’t look to your dreams or aspirations, or even to your official creeds or philosophy. We are way too skilled at shielding ourselves from our deepest truths/ ugly realities. No, if you want to know who you really are, look no further than to your nightmares.

What is the one thing that if you lost it, would make you want to throw in the towel for good? Is your family, wealth, a position? Whatever it is, the answer to this question is your meaning in life; what you are really living for. You may go to church, you may volunteer, you may be a terrific artist or father or mother; but it all could just be an aside. Something to throw in for good measure, for community, for insurance.

But we all know that whatever it is we are living for can be taken away all too easy. Death, disease, tragedy strike all of us sooner or later. If you don’t believe this yet, it’s not a question of if but when you will. This is life in a passing, temporal world.

So where do you get a identity that isn’t fragile? Where can we get a meaning that will stand the test of our lives? Where does the black trail of smoke from you life end?