It’s the little things in life that make it worth living. Little things that add up to the big things.
Finding meaning in life is very important. Ernest Becker calls it self-esteem. When a person doesn’t find meaning in their life, they become depressed and anxious. Feeling safely immersed in a meaningful conception of reality (i.e., the cultural worldview) ultimately functions to protect people from anxiety due to the uniquely human capacity to be cognizant of their eventual death.
Looking back, Jeanne and I feel accomplished and have found meaning beyond words doing what we’ve done. We’re in our late 50s (still young), and feel like we’ve accomplished more in the last 30 years than we could in a hundred lifetimes.
We’re not wealthy, in the financial sense. As Jeanne always points out, we’re millionaires in other ways, many other ways. However, we have been able to be disciplined, and have saved over the 30 years we’ve been together. We’ve worked hard. Very hard. And we’ve sacrificed. For example, (the little things that add up over time) we haven’t been “out to eat” (restaurants, food trucks, whatever) for almost five years. Every meal has been made at home. We haven’t been to a theater, movie-house, concert, etc. for even longer. Not that we wouldn’t have wanted to do those things, it’s because we had bigger dreams (land and a homestead) and wanted to stay debt-free. So we stayed home, saved the money, and kept our dream alive. Jeanne’s worked hard taking care of the home and doing administrative work for Studio Q. I’ve had two jobs most of my life. A regular “9 to 5” job working as a photographer and working Studio Q - teaching, writing, and making personal work.
We’re happy and content. We like solitude. Maybe it’s our age. Maybe our life travels have satisfied the need to do all of that “stuff”. We’ve traveled the world, met some amazing people, and had some of the most amazing experiences. I’m not sure. We’re happy here, and we’re at peace. According to Aristotle, happiness consists in achieving, through the course of a whole lifetime, all the goods — health, wealth, knowledge, friends, etc. — that lead to the perfection of human nature and to the enrichment of human life. This requires us to make choices, some of which may be very difficult.
I feel my ego receding. I no longer have the desire to “compete” or to “be the best” at what I do. I just feel content doing what I do, regardless of what the world thinks. I no longer care what people think. I really don’t. The wonderful thing about growing older is that you leave that baggage behind. You gain insight, maybe maturity, and realize what’s really important in life. And I can tell you, it’s none of those things or what people think about you. And you might be surprised how little, if any, people actually think about you (ego).
As we spend our time on this mountain, reflecting and trying to make the rest of our lives the best we can, we want to make sure that our family and friends know we love them, we miss them, and we want only the best in life for them. Socrates said, "Be slow to fall into friendship; but when thou art in, continue firm and constant."
