The Meaning of Life

The meaning of life. Well now there's a big question to ponder!

Joseph Campbell said: "People say that what we're all seeking is a meaning for life. I don't think that's what we're really seeking. I think that what we're seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonance within our own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive. That's what it's all finally about."

That is one of my absolute favorite quotes.

These last couple of years have been largely about finding my purpose. I had quit college several years ago and been working to make ends meet, not knowing what to do with my life. During that time I began my weight loss journey and the result sparked in me a passion for food, nutrition, fitness and a desire to help people live in a healthier, happier way.

I think my purpose in life is to help and inspire people. That's the thing I can do to give back to the world and hopefully do my part to leave the world a better place than I came into. That might be my purpose, but I'm not sure that it is the total meaning of life.

The meaning of life might include following my bliss. Another great quote comes to mind-
"If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Wherever you are—if you are following your bliss, you are enjoying that refreshment, that life within you, all the time." -Joseph Campbell

That means me giving back to the world and doing the work that aligns with my spirit, but I think there's more to it than that. I also think that finding meaning in life is about learning what life is trying to teach you.

The way I see it, life is a lot like going to school, and each lifetime is another grade level. The things we experience and learn will determine if we graduate to the next leve. So when I wonder, "What am I doing with my life?" I am also asking if I am living life to its fullest. Am I getting everything possible out of every moment? Am I experiencing life? Am I putting enough into my relationships and taking away valuable spiritual lessons?

Even now in this phase of my life- working, going to school, searching out a meaningful and long-lasting relationship. Even in the most mundane things I try to find purpose and meaning. I think that when I can do that, no matter what I'm doing, I can find joy.