Is life a gift?

[Rhiannon]

Whether life comes from a creator deity or happenstance, is life a gift to be taken gladly? Do we have any kind of obligation to 'make the best' out of life?

[floo]

Whether life comes from a creator deity or happenstance, is life a gift to be taken gladly? Do we have any kind of obligation to 'make the best' out of life?

I am of the opinion that the life we have is likely to be the only one we have, and therefore it is sensible to try to make the most of it. Sometimes, due to illness, that isn't always possible and people should have the right to the get out clause, with help if necessary.

[Shaker]

Whether life comes from a creator deity or happenstance, is life a gift to be taken gladly? Do we have any kind of obligation to 'make the best' out of life?

People tend to be glad about life if they feel it's a meaningful one worth the living. Others don't; either way, it's only entirely subjective personal opinion rather than some sort of great cosmic truth.

[ekim]

I suspect that Keith Maitland might see it another way, but life to me is a mystery to be lived and a joy in essence.  Living that mystery can be an expression of that joy but it does get challenged and at times that challenge can appear overwhelming.  Surfing the waves of living is a learning experience and the drive to survive is usually pretty strong.

[Shaker]

I suspect that people see life in different ways on the basis of everything else that makes us who or what we are: the genetic hand of cards we are given like it or not, coupled with life experiences which can either combat - only to some extent, mind - that inheritance or bolster it.

[Nearly Sane]

Whether life comes from a creator deity or happenstance, is life a gift to be taken gladly? Do we have any kind of obligation to 'make the best' out of life?

i suppose so, I'm not so keen on the alternative.

I take it you mean the alterantive to life. Beind dead seems like nothing, literally. Dying, on the other hand.....

[Shaker]

Whether life comes from a creator deity or happenstance, is life a gift to be taken gladly? Do we have any kind of obligation to 'make the best' out of life?

i suppose so, I'm not so keen on the alternative.

I take it you mean the alterantive to life. Beind dead seems like nothing, literally. Dying, on the other hand.....

To paraphrase Mark Twain not a huge amount, being dead in that sense is something I do for quite literally hours on end every single day without any trouble whatsoever. What's to fear in that?

[Rhiannon]

The thing that bothers me actually is that I've wasted so, so much of my life and achieved very little and I'm now in my mid-forties and wondering how many ships have sailed.

[Shaker]

The thing that bothers me actually is that I've wasted so, so much of my life and achieved very little and I'm now in my mid-forties and wondering how many ships have sailed.

Yes, me too, apart from the fact that I don't know how many ships have sailed; I know them all, or the big ones anyway.

Clearly it matters now, because it can only matter if you're still alive, which is the only state in which you're still able to do anything about it. When you're dead, nothing matters because there's nothing for anyone to matter to.

I fight shy of "spirituality" not necessarily on its own terms but because of some of its associations. Some philosophies I lean to and incline toward and endorse because they confirm what I already think about life, the universe and everything. I would recommend doing the Zen thing (wiggy will be good on this - smart chap, I have often thought, especially recently with ideas very much akin to my own) and tearing up all religions and philosophies, pouring lighter fluid over the scraps, throwing a lit match on the scraps, watching them burn and then pissing all over the ashes. If you're a book person (and I know you are!) I would, notwithstanding my relatively recent desert island books thread, particularly recommend:

www.amazon.co.uk/F-k-Ultimate-Spiritual-Way/dp/1781802963/

www.amazon.co.uk/The-Way-Fuck-It-Wisdom/dp/1848501560/

www.amazon.co.uk/Therapy-Profane-Way-Profound-Happiness/dp/1781800014/

There is no final, ultimate truth about human existence, and this is it.

[Nearly Sane]

And how many ships have not. Enjoy what you can of life, it is not wasted. Ask what you can of life, it is not wasted. Sit and be able to laugh with someone, it is not wasted.

[Walt Zingmatilder]

There is no final, ultimate truth about human existence,

That sounds suspiciously like a punt at a final ultimate truth, Shaker

[Leonard James]

For life to have been a gift there would have to be a giver, conscious of what it is giving, and I can't for the life of me consider abiogenesis in such a light.

As far as 'obligation' is concerned, I don't think we are obliged to make the best of life, but I feel that to do so is the most intelligent course to take. The life we have is that of a member of a social species, so antisocial behaviour is a no-no for the majority of us.

But as has already been observed, it is up to each of us how we live our lives.

[Udayana]

This is one of those unanswerable questions. What if you are born into slavery or with a crippling disablement or become caught in one of any number of potential pitfalls? It is what it is. You can try and accept it or change it, feel happy or miserable. Doing something often makes one feel better.

[Jack Knave]

This is one of those unanswerable questions.

Mainly because no one can define what life is or what 'make the best of life' means.

People naturally strive towards what they need or 'are', and one of the factors in this is at what point do they give up and join the mire of the collective.

[ad_orientem]

The thing that bothers me actually is that I've wasted so, so much of my life and achieved very little and I'm now in my mid-forties and wondering how many ships have sailed.

Ditto. I often think back to when I was a child and what potentially I might have been or done; and then I think of myself as an adult and see a series of missed opportunities. It's probably just part of life, of getting older. There's probably not much we can do about it. I don't, however, feel bitter about life, although I often feel sad, and I'd rather be alive than dead. Life is a gift, I think, and I think I'd feel the same even if I didn't believe in God.

[Rhiannon]

Thanks for all the replies. I hadn't intended this to sound like a mid-life-angst sobfest but I think that because I do regard life as a gift, however random, I'm annoyed at wasting so much of it.

Shaker, I've heard good things of the Fuck It philosophy so will have a look. I think everything that has been going on has caused me to disconnect from looking after my inner needs anyway. Time to clear some space, physically and mentally, and reconnect.

Like Ad-o I don't feel bitter so much as bloody annoyed with myself.

[SusanDoris]

An Aunt of mine used to say to people - never waste any time on regrets. What you did at each stage in your life, you did; you cannot change it so accept that you did the best you could at the time. .
(I've had almost a week away from the internet - my monitor ceased working and only today have I got a new one, which my excellent neighbour has plugged in for me.

[BashfulAnthony]

An Aunt of mine used to say to people - never waste any time on regrets. What you did at each stage in your life, you did; you cannot change it so accept that you did the best you could at the time. .
(I've had almost a week away from the internet - my monitor ceased working and only today have I got a new one, which my excellent neighbour has plugged in for me.

But what if you didn't do your best at the time?  Can you avoid regrets then?

[Leonard James]

An Aunt of mine used to say to people - never waste any time on regrets. What you did at each stage in your life, you did; you cannot change it so accept that you did the best you could at the time. .
(I've had almost a week away from the internet - my monitor ceased working and only today have I got a new one, which my excellent neighbour has plugged in for me.

Glad to see you back, Susan!

About regrets, there are many past actions I would like to be able to change, but it is now impossible. Best not to worry about it, but resolve to try harder in the future.

[SusanDoris]

But what if you didn't do your best at the time?  Can you avoid regrets then?

It makes no difference whether you have regrets or not - but you can certainly avoid wasting time on them.
The action is impossible to change. Far better to learn and resolve to try to do better. That is far more likely to produce positive, useful actions in the present and future.

As Leonard says.

[floo]

I was thinking if I have any personal regrets, regarding my own actions, but can't think of anything I would wish to change in that respect. I am happy being me, even if I am not perfect.

[Rhiannon]

My regrets are all about what I haven't done rather than about what I did.

[Shaker]

They're the worst kind, I'm afraid.

[Rhiannon]

I'm hoping time hasn't run out entirely, at least for some of the stuff I could have done.

[Shaker]

Even for those like me who don't believe in time as anything other than a purely human invention, time is in short supply. Do it - whatever it is - now, or don't bother and don't bother regretting it. You can't do it any other time because there's no other time in which to do it. Now is the only answer.