I’ve never been sold on
the whole ‘you live, you die, and that is it!’ idea. As a very young child I’ve felt a connection
to some higher force, a spiritual being who watched over me and had a plan for
my life. At that age I didn’t know what
it was or what it meant, and it took several years of self discovery and
spiritual journeys to finally realize where my beliefs stood. I’ve met countless people that cover both
ends of the spectrum; from adamant atheists to deeply devoted Christians. I’ve also met Hindus and Muslims, New Age
spiritualists, Pagans, and others who simply didn’t wish to be labeled but walk
on their own spiritual path. We may be
different from each other, but there’s a common thread connecting us all. The belief that life is precious and
unpredictable.
What is the meaning of a
lifetime? Can it be measured in more
than moments or years? Does the lifetime
we currently live have more meaning than what we witness from day to day?
To most historians or scientists,
a lifetime is a linear progression of a living being. I like to look at lifetimes in a more
detailed observation. Lifetimes are
happening millions of times through the spectrum of time and space. Our life is parallel to billions of others,
each one running its course on tracks that never meet or that clash head first
into one another. Our bodies live this
current lifetime and label it the present, but the continuum of our
entire existence isn’t limited to the restraint of time. The past is what we see when we look
as far back to the day we were born. Our
future is the years we have yet to live until we reach the end of our
journey. But is there more?
My personal faith system
has given me many answers to the span of life as a whole. As a Catholic, I’ve embraced the promise made
on a a cross. This belief shows me that
lifespans as we understand them aren’t entirely precise. My afterlife is a continuation of my earthly
pilgrimage and it has no end in sight.
That means that while my body will cease to exist in the earthly realm,
my soul—which has been in me even before my birth [“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you” (Jeremiah 1:5)]”—will travel throughout
time in a new, infinite realm. But, if
one looks at this with the traditional lifetime glasses, then it’s easy to
label this idea as present (our current life) and future (new, eternal
realm). This is where I go back to ‘my
soul has been me even before my birth’.
I believe that God has had a plan for us before conception and
birth. This plan revolves around lives
living in parallel unity with millions of others, many dependent on mine.
It’s pretty overwhelming
to think how our lives are intricately entwined with others. In the spectrum of life spans, the choices we
make or do not make, directly impact others and their current and future
lives. This means that by our decisions
we influence parallel lives that are strictly dependent on our own
journey. We carry a huge responsibility
on our shoulders, yet we can’t consciously begin to understand that
phenomena. But that’s the beauty of it
all, isn’t it? To be part of something
so great and so incomprehensible is one of the many parts that make up our life
journey.
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