Hello Fellow Humans and Welcome.....
Thanks to anyone viewing this blog and for checking in to see what this fellow member of the Human Society has to say, share, and hopefully offer. I called this the beginning in part because it is my very first blog. I'm sure it will show to many seasoned bloggers, but hopefully I can contribute something of value, and reward those for the time invested in reading and participating in this; time of which we all have to precious little of. This blog is about Life, examining it's purpose and meaning on various levels, physical and metaphysical, from the highest of conceptual and theoretical perspectives, to the most practical and ordinary experiences. Any discussion about life's purpose or meaning, whether collectively as a species or as unique individuals, raises within me the question of "how and when did/does life begin", which is the other reason why I chose to call this post the beginning. The very first time I can faithfully remember cogently asking the question "when did existence as we know it begin" was in my 7th grade Science Class at Simon Baruch J.H.S. in New York City. The answer I received from my Science Teach Mr. Gould was "Why can't it simply be that life has always existed, and there is no beginning or end". This response, as I pondered the unfathomable nature of it, perplexed me so that my brain would hurt each time I tried to reconcile what was, with what came before it. The circularity of this concept seems to defy and violate the very nature of quantitative laws, the law of causality, and the human concept of the time paradigm; For all things there is a beginning and an end. Skeptics of metaphysics would argue that to some extent this speaks to the very nature of the unattainability of the metaphysical pursuit. Suffice it to say that this response from my 7th grade Science Teacher would go on to shape me profoundly, motivating me to search for a greater understanding of the meaning of our existence and serving as an internal barometer for a majority of my life's experiences. Are we derived and evolved from some primordial soup form by the coalescence of a low oxygen atmosphere, were we crafted and created then imbued with the breath of life from a supreme divine being, are we the descendants of ancestors who migrated to earth, are we here as a result of the combination of any of these possibilities or are they all mutually exclusive or, is there an explanation that has not been considered. Although one from any period in history could espouse the benefits of understanding human existence on a higher level for the purpose of translating it to a better life experience, this is the time you and I live in now and in my opinion the value of such an understanding is desperately needed. Obviously theories and belief systems abound, scientific, religious, and secular; this blog is not intended to endorse or refute any, merely to engage in a discussion about who we are, how did we get here, and why are we here?!
Creationism? Intelligent Design? Big Bang? Evolution? Whatever the view, academic or layperson, I only ask that you express it respectfully, genuinely, and with the intent to work toward a greater understanding of our existence on this Planet.
Thank you for tuning in. Let's connect and share, hopefully we may be able to keep from destroying each other and this world!
One in Seven (Billion)
