Lately, I have been thinking a lot about how much the choices I make will affect me in the future. It often brings me to the idea that nothing actually matters very much due to how tiny we are compared to everything else that exists, will exist, or has existed. But also, how we won’t live to see the vast majority of that and the exponentially short time we have here on this earth is really all that we have.
I’m very tired and a little discombobulated right now. I'm not saying any of my opinions are unique or deep in any way or that any of these thoughts I'm thinking are original, but here are some of my views on this idea.
We will all be gone someday, as well as everything we can imagine. Even things that are so ahead of our time that we can not imagine will be gone someday, and decisions that we have made in our lifetimes will have absolutely no effect on the universe whatsoever. Personal decisions like if you choose to carry a cell phone or go to the doctors. If you choose to start a family. I guess the ultimate impact humanity can have is using nuclear weapons. But, even the effect of that would someday be erased. Knowing this can sometimes be a little depressing, like “what is the point of anything then?” But it can also make you feel a little bit less afraid to take chances. No matter how badly you screw up, the effect will soon be completely erased.
On the other hand, although our lifetimes are so incredibly tiny in the grand scheme of things, they are really all that we have and so that kind of makes it forever for us. Sure, our cells will be around after we die, and some of us will have grandchildren and great grandchildren and great x100000 grandchildren, but even they will be gone someday, no matter how many life prolonging techniques are created, and our brains will not be functioning during these times to see or process or understand any of this. A lifetime is really forever for us, unless I guess you believe in afterlife which is a topic I don't know if I believe in and I won't get into. Let's just stay scientific.
Forever could mean a lot of things. Is forever one lifetime? A hundred lifetimes? Is it everything we can imagine and everything we can't imagine? Sure, personal decisions such as if you choose to go to college, take a job, etc. won't matter one bit in a short time but if any of those decisions would make you happy, then it means a world of difference.
I have heard a lot of people say that because of the vastness of the universe and our tiny effect, that it is silly that we focus on stupid and trivial aspects and follow society and go to work everyday. I think they are correct in some ways but I also partly disagree. Civilized countries have found a system that works for our society to ultimately make humanity cohesive and peaceful. Jobs cause a lot of stress but ultimately your job should make you feel good (in my naive opinion). The system that our society currently has is go to work, come home, have a hobby, whatever. If you don't want to be a part of that, then don't. Travel the world (though you may end up cleaning toilets). Follow your passion, even if it’s strange. Take the road less traveled or whatever. It's all about what will make you the most happy. No one will care in the grand scheme of the universe, but that is a decision that will probably affect you for a lifetime, aka, all the time you as an individual have in this universe.
You can't, or shouldn't, go through your existence thinking that nothing matters because everything will be gone and entirely new and then gone again someday. Although it does show the relative importance of aspects of existence, if everyone went through life like that, then what would be the point of the universe? I guess that is a very subjective question but my personal opinion is that if we ourselves only have our lifetimes, then we should enjoy them doing what makes us feel good. It's okay to be selfish in that sense. It's okay to be whatever you want to be, unless you're somehow taking away someone else's forever. It's important to remember that scientifically, life is all you have. It is your only opportunity to make your mark on the world. Our lifetimes are tiny compared to the grand scheme of the universe, but that is not to say it's meaningless. But, knowing that nothing you ever do will have an effect on the universe forever can make you feel a little less afraid, at least it does for me. Though everything we've done in our lives will someday be erased, if it makes you feel good and isn't hurting anyone else, do it. Who cares if you embarrass yourself or make a mistake? If you live for 100 years, that is 100 out of 13 billion years that the universe has existed. So have fun!
