Is it enough to just be a good person? Or should we be crusaders, striving for a world better than this one?
Better? Different.
I suppose in reality there is no 'should,' and perhaps even, no 'better.' So why do I question whether just living is enough? If I have one life -- one expanse of time that is followed by nothing -- why does life and its quality matter?
Because there is only one?
3 comments:
Oh, such a good question! I've been asking it of myself lately!
"Is it enough to just be a good person? Or should we be crusaders, striving for a world better than this one?"
This is what I've been telling myself lately: that it's impossible to "just be" a good person--it requires constant, conscious proactivity. We take so many--most, really--of our small, repetitive decisions for granted, but if we'd stop doing that and start approaching everything we already do (spend, speak, eat) with heightened awareness, we'd essentially be crusading. Because inevitably your habits and your career and your life would become a natural outgrowth of that Crusade of the Million Decisions Every Day. Which is to say that "just being" a good person is *equivalent* to being a crusader, where "Should I laugh at this 'un-PC' joke or not?" eventually and unavoidably leads to "Should I work this job or not?"
At least for those of us who aren't so oppressed that such decisions are life-or-death... hum.
Thanks for your comments, my friends!
born alone, die alone.
Post a Comment