Dear Little Bald Bastard,
Is this all there is?
- Desperately Seeking Soothing
Dear Desperately Seeking Soothing,
I like to think so. Who wants to slog through life hoping for a reward after it's over?
The concept of a post-off-mortal-coil-shuffling reward is one of the oldest tools of religious authority. If the faithful believe that there's a fabulous reward coming later on, they'll shoulder their burdens (or strap on their dynamite corsets) and trudge on until it's their turn as the bug on the cosmic windshield.
It's tempting, when my faith in human nature is at its lowest ebb, to believe that the concept of a reward in heaven is nothing more than a carrot, meant to keep the masses quiet as they bear the burden of crushing poverty, while their church amasses a sizable (an non-taxable) fortune. But I suspect that the truth is a bit more complicated.
If people knew that this was the only life on the agenda, they might work a lot harder trying to make this life as good as possible: taking chances, trying new things, helping out their fellow short-timers. If you die and there's no there there, then the journey finally becomes more important than the destination.
Then again, some of us might use that as an excuse to treat the world and our fellows even more callously, if that's possible. If you're not going to punished in the afterlife, why should you care about whose feelings (or face) you stomp on?
All of that was a roundabout way of saying yes, this is all there is. You get one life, just like everybody else. Don't wait around expecting to get all the things you want once your body lies mouldering in the grave. Planning for retirement is daunting enough; planning for eternity is impractical and unnecessary. Just try to keep in mind that everyone else is living their one life too, and it's not a zero-sum game.
I'll ditch the philosophy and get back to the snark next time, I promise.
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