In the face of a seemingly increasingly hostile world, it can be very tempting to retreat into the comfort of what we enjoy, and to think we can forever be comfortable in our own little bubble, with nothing the activities and interests we enjoy. It can be tempting to feel as if we have the upper hand on everyone else, as if everyone is under a spell that keeps them participating in life’s craziness, talking, fighting about things, trying to make changes in the world. Why try if the craziness is bound to continue, right? Why get into anything, why do anything outside of what we want? What we fail to realize when we live this way is that, for as fun as whatever hobby we might be into is, for as fun as music equipment, or game consoles, or computers or TVs, for as much as technology in general is fun and life-changing, at the end of the day it is still nothing but man-made invention. Inanimate objects can replace us in the workplace, or in any other aspect, but it can never truly replace humanity, if you know what I mean. As a music producer, for example, I have first-hand experience of just how much machines can inspire us, and how useful and fun they can be. They can inspire us to create art, they can make our lives infinitely easier, and the fact is that we have gotten to a point where we really rely on them, and our lives are intertwined with theirs. That’s just the thing though, that they don’t have lives, because they are objects that we’ve created. We can create because we do have life, whatever life or consciousness is. Machines don’t have souls, or brains, or emotions, or thoughts, or life. As humans, we require true human connection, and we should think carefully about what we might miss out on if we decide to completely detach ourselves from people in favor of our hobbies or even aspirations. In the post before this one I was writing about Viktor Frankl and his idea that if we can find a meaning to inspire us, we can overcome situation. I also mentioned his quote about how people distract themselves with pleasure when their lives lack meaning, and I wondered if, in this context, one’s life might be totally worthwhile and satisfactory if one were to actually immerse oneself in one’s art or hobby, in something one truly enjoys and that gives personal meaning to one’s life. If what we truly need to be happy is meaning, then why can’t we create our own meaning, and why can’t that meaning be intertwined with what brings us pleasure, even if it doesn’t involve other people? Would that mean that we can actually find meaning in material things? I don’t see why not. But wait, wouldn’t that mean that drug addicts can find meaning in drugs? If they’re happy then why not? This is where things start getting tricky, and lines get blurred. Pleasure and meaning. Now, these days it might be an unpopular opinion, but I have a suspicion that, although we can definitely go through life just learning and entertaining ourselves or even creating art and immersing ourselves in something we truly enjoy, we will ultimately come to a point where we find that, for as inspiring as it is, it can never replace human connection.
I appreciate you reading.
rebel eye 