EARLY this week, my niece, Tracy, rattles off 20 questions from across the dinner table ending with, “Why are we put here on Earth to live if we are just going to die anyway?”
When I was her age three decades ago, I, too, asked myself a slew of similar questions. Three decades later, I can’t say I have found the answers to all my questions.
But not knowing all the answers no longer gives me stress. On the contrary, it gives me hope—that perhaps, God will give me many more years on Earth to find the answers.
Some say our lives are predestined at birth. If such is the case, then what is the point of living if our destiny has already been determined?
I like to think of our life here on Earth as a trip. You see, I take a lot of trips. And before I leave on each trip, I make sure I’ve read, researched and mapped out every little detail in the itinerary.
I know where I’m going but I’m still thrilled by the prospect of what I’m going to see, what I’m going to experience, what I’m going to discover. Every trip is an adventure—an opportunity to expand my mind, to challenge my body, to explore my soul. It’s an opportunity to hear a new story, to learn a new thing, to discover a new joy.
Why are we put here on Earth to live if we are just going to die anyway?
God wanted to give us a gift—the gift of life, but He wanted us to experience it in all its glory so He gave us free will so that we would know love and pain, joy and grief. And in order for us to appreciate life even better, God gave it an end.
Death is part of life. We love and live better when we know we don’t have forever. Life and death—one would be meaningless without the other.
To exist means to stay static. To live means to evolve—to discover what it means to be alive, to find your significance, to recognize your bliss when you see it.
It’s not always easy to know what you want but sometimes, you get there by knowing what you don’t want.
I can’t say I have arrived. I think of myself as a tireless traveler—constantly on the road but always so fortunate to be able to find fabulous spots and to feel incredible moments of joy along the way.
Why are we put here on Earth to live if we are just going to die anyway? Because while we will die one day, we get to live on all the other days. And on all these other days, God gives us the opportunity to find bliss.
And this is why we live—for the fighting chance to find bliss.
My goddaughter, Ar. Dani Yu opens her first solo painting exhibition entitled “Come. Be. Become.” 10:30am, today, Feb. 3 at The Gallery of BIG Hotel, W.O. Seno St., Parkmall Drive, Mandaue City.
If you have an appreciation for abstract art, or simply an interest in possibly finding your bliss, do drop by. Exhibit runs until March 3, 2019. Contact +63 917 659 9380 for inquiries.