By Michael Hooper
The other day I felt like I had discovered the meaning of life, it was right there in front of me, like a doorway that would introduce me to a whole new universe, a place of magnificent joy, with a multitude of answers and lights. Then suddenly the ineffable idea disappeared. That doorway had closed.
There is an existential crisis in the world -- people lack meaning and purpose in their lives; the empty void causes anxiety, anguish and despair.
All my life I’ve been looking for openings to new dimensions, places where I could learn and grow, and be engaged with people and by myself creating something beautiful. I found curiosity is the magic to these doorways, and a willingness to learn something new, humble thyself to learn from the master.
These dimensions include desires, passions, dreams, books and movies, artwork, painting, music, stamp collecting, history and philosophy and the study of economics. This eclectic array of interests occupies my mind all the time so boredom is kept at bay, but sometimes I'm still bored. Maybe that's OK?
Some of my favorite memories are painting in the outdoors with friends. I enjoy painting with watercolorist and longtime art teacher Rosemary Menninger.
Rosemary Menninger by Michael Hooper
One time she sat on a hillside painting the scene below her. The sun glistened around her, that golden light on land owned by the Villages in west Topeka.
Rosemary said she led a group of native American children on a hike to a 2000-year-old gravesite at The Villages. They hiked up a trail to a hill. You can see all four corners of the Earth: the Kansas River and the Union Pacific Railroad and Interstate 70 and planes flying overhead to Denver or Kansas City. When the children finally arrived at the old Indian gravesite, one of the kids said to Rosemary, "may we have a minute?" They wanted to be alone among themselves, to contemplate the moment. So she walked away for a time while the children huddled around the historic site.
It was a thrilling and meaningful experience for the children and Rosemary.
The famous philosopher and psychiatrist, Dr. Viktor Frankl found meaning and purpose, while in a Nazi concentration camp. He said, "the meaning of life differs from man-to-man, from day today, from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general, but rather the specific meaning of a person's life at a given moment."
He compels us to attach meaning to what we are doing now. How do you attach meaning to our living? Frankl says, “Through work, especially when that work is both creative in nature and in alignment with a purpose greater than ourselves. Through love, which often manifests itself in the service of others. And through suffering, which is a fundamental to the human experience.”
I find the most meaning in work, and in love, perhaps love is the highest form of meaning. But it’s hard to find meaning in suffering.
Yet we all suffer, we must find a way to transcend our suffering, but maybe that’s the wrong approach. Maybe we should embrace our suffering and find a way through it, perhaps there is an end to it, or a momentary truce in the pain.
I believe there is value and meaning in pleasure, but excessive focus on pleasure will result in emptiness and pain.
I find the most lasting meaning in life comes from doing good. This may sound very simple but at the end of our days we need to look back and ask, did I do anything good? Did I make a person’s life a little better, a little happier, did I make someone laugh and enjoy the moment. Did I listen to someone who needed to share a hard thing with a friend?
Every day provides lessons on living. The very moment I start bragging about something, boom, I’m gonna get hit in the head by a shitting bird, which happened to me in Paris. A pigeon decided it was time to shit, and went right over my head. Good thing I had a hat on, but I threw it away, my shirt was stained, I took it off, and my friend Jim Wallace took the shirt off his back and gave it to me. Wow. He handed me several napkins, so I was able to clean myself up with some water. I said thank you Jim for this T-shirt. And he said “oh it’s nothing. Use it to clean your paint brushes.”
Jim's act of kindness made my misfortune a cherished memory.
There is an existential crisis; we are polluting our planet. There is conflict and war with innocent people injured and dying. The condition of our planet is a reflection of our troubled soul.
I don't know all the answers but I'm confident that by offering sincere acts of kindness, charity and love, lifting up the human spirit in distress, cleaning up our planet, removing plastic and waste in our oceans and waterways, stopping war, making peace, and helping the wounded, our world would be a better place. By healing others, we heal ourselves. Save one life from death, we save the world.
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