Nothing has happened today so far. And nothing will happen today. Big surprise, right? Of course, I doubt there ever were very many who really believed the world was going to come to an end. But there are many, many more who believe there occurred today some sort of spiritual event. Some sort of cosmic realignment. Some sort of grand awakening.
Well, it didn't. People are going to be just as selfish, greedy and craven as they were before today. People will also be just as kind, generous and caring. Because here's the truth about December 21, 2012: it's just another day. People did good today. People did bad. There was plenty of both love and hate to go around.
I think that if a person needs to believe something happened today in order to feel fulfilled in his or her life, then that person has been cheating themselves out of the ability to enjoy and appreciate what they had before today. Your life is not any more special or meaningful now than it was yesterday. If you think it is, I'm sorry for all the lost meaningful days you've let slip by.
Why didn't anything happen? Well, it's because all the beliefs surrounding this date have no basis in fact or history. The Mayans, or any other ancient culture, did not have the ability to predict the future. A belief that their calendar means something significant is no more reasonable than a belief in the predictions of Nostradamus or Edgar Cayce.
Isn't it time that rational, intelligent human beings stop believing in such nonsense? Isn't it time that we create a culture in which people must require something beyond a "feeling" before they wrap their lives up in a falsity? And the way we do that is by making it unacceptable for charlatans to ply their trades. Anyone who claims to predict one's future, or put one in contact with dead relatives or spirits, or tell who you were in a past life, should be able to demonstrably prove that they can do the things they claim. If they can't, they should be charged with defrauding the public.
But here's the worst part about it: many of the psychics/spiritualists/whatever-they-call-themselves believe they really can and are doing these things! How dangerous is it to have a person who believes their own claims telling others what they should and shouldn't do? It could easily lead to financial ruin or worse. And I, for one, am tired of seeing earnest people, people who are hurting or desperate, people who are trying to find direction in their lives, buy into it.
I do not claim that some people don't have clairvoyant powers. But if you do, how base is it to use such powers for financial gain? And I would bet money that 99% of the people offering up such services for a fee cannot offer any proof that their claims have veracity. As I said before, this if fraud, plain and simple.
So nothing happened today, no matter what charlatans the world over would have the willing believe. Today wasn't special. But it was, in the sense that every day is special. Every day is a gift. Don't spend your life waiting for some future event that may never come. Don't spend it searching for answers that aren't there. If you want the meaning of life, here it is: be good, be kind, and try to live a life that is meaningful. Interpret that how you will. But whatever you do, live for the here. Live for the now. Spend time with those you love. Try not to add any misery to the world and, if you can, add some joy. I'll end with one of my favorite quotes by one of my favorite authors:
“Three things in human life are important: the first is to be kind; the second is to be kind; and the third is to be kind.” - Henry James
amen!!
ReplyDeleteGreat observations and advice, Michael.
ReplyDeleteI've been reading quite a few articles written about people who have been building underground shelters - some quite large and complex. They have spent incredible amounts of time, money and effort building these things as insurance against some future threat. I wonder how much of their lives they've sacrificed in this pursuit. I prefer to - as you suggest - live in the here and now. Make a difference now.