Meaningful things everyone should do before they die

There are all sorts of lists out there that tell you what to do before you die. The bucket lists some life changing experience like travelling abroad or some daring adventure like going on a roller coaster. But I’ve found most of those lists a little shallow. A little lacking. Truly the experience of seeing the Great Wall would be life changing, but I can’t afford to go to China. In my daily life, I don’t think showering in a waterfall is practical or necessary.

So here are the things I’ve determined everyone should do before they die. A true bucket list that, I hope, will really bring meaning and enjoyment to our lives…

1. Discover your purpose in life.

Your purpose is individual to you. Your purpose can be the same as some other people, it can be your own. Your purpose can change throughout your lifetime as your experiences or beliefs change. It can be directed by religion or economics or politics. Maybe your purpose is a mantra, or a direction of living. The purpose will guide your actions, and give those actions intention. It helps define your goals.

2. Do everything you can to accomplish your purpose.

We all do our very best whenever we can. Even when we get distracted or start to feel ill or sad. Even when sad, we do our best. Our best should be the things that accomplish our purpose. Doing our best doesn’t necessarily eliminate our responsibilities. Earning income, for example, can provide you the means to accomplish your purpose. Eating, similarly, provides nourishment and sustains us as we move to accomplish our goals.

3. Enjoy the company of others

Strangers, your friends, maybe family – enjoy eating or playing together. Enjoy working on a car together. Enjoy peaceful quietness at a library, or have friendly conversation on the bus. Talk with someone you don’t know in order to get to know them. Talk to someone you know, to get to know them better. Learn from other people. Especially people who are different than you.

4. Participate in your government

The number one thing most of us can do is Vote. If you can’t vote, find a way to voice your concerns. For example, we can all participate in a conversation about politics. Write a letter (or have a letter written for you) to send to your local government. Call into a radio station. Write to a local newspaper. Send an improvement suggestion to a bureaucratic office. Find a way to participate (or maybe oppose) your government.

5. Get Help

We all need help with something. Don’t try to fix it on your own. You could try to fix it, but it will be more difficult than it has to be. Get help even for the little things. But especially for the big things. Reach out to someone for assistance. If they are unable to help, continue looking. We all need something to help us out. Even searching the internet, or going to the library for self help information is going to assist your in achieving your purpose.

6. Count your blessings

At the very least, you can appreciate that you woke up this morning and are given the opportunity to accomplish your purpose for another day.

7. Think

or “collect your thoughts” or “meditate” or “pray” or “pause for a moment.” Doing so will help focus your attention to the things that matter.

8. Learn new things

Continue to learn. Focus on something that you don’t know. Make sure you’re interested in learning about that thing, or it will be hard to learn. Literacy is one of the most important tools for self fulfillment. Make it a priority.

Purpose of Life, Work and the Problem of Choice

 Agent Smith from the Matrix asks Neo near the end of the movie, “Why do you persist?” Smith believes that Purpose drives and motivates humans (and artificial intelligence). He determines that the purpose of all living things is to die (and his observations would make him correct, for all life die). When he sees that Neo persists in being alive, he thinks Neo isn’t fulfilling his purpose. Neo responds, “I choose to.” It’s interesting, Neo says at one point in the movie that, “the problem is choice.” Indeed, choosing to be alive does interfere with the purpose of dying. Some people do choose to die. So Neo, choosing to persist, is Smith’s problem. Further, Neo understands and chooses to die at the end of their battle. He sees his purpose with help from the Oracle. He also died in the first movie, fulfilling his purpose. But, in death he found out he is loved by someone. He must, then, Choose to be alive to be with the one he loves. At the end of the second movie, he chooses to keep his love alive, damned the rest of humanity (who’s purpose is to die). The difference at the end of the last movie is that his love is now dead. The choice he made to be alive is moot. He does not need to choose to be alive anymore.

And now, work. Why do we work? We work to meet our needs and wants. Our needs and wants, however, are illusions of a capitalist structure. Our needs and wants are created for us through our social upbringing/programming. Meeting our needs and wants in this structure defines our success within it. If our success is measured by the structure, let us step outside the structure and find our real purpose and needs and wants. Success then becomes non-capitalistic. The need to work is not mandatory. In this scenario, we are personally successful.

But others won’t see our success because they are measuring our success through the structure’s lens. We can choose to have their opinion matter or not. The opinion of others matters such that it gives us a personal sense of gratification. The opinion of others does not matter because our success is not measured by others.

 Further, if we see the structure, understand how it works, and value the opinion of those in the structure: We could operate within the structure to appear successful. It’s certainly a tricky line. I understand that the purpose of my work is to be successful within the structure. That is why I choose to continue to work. But that’s only me.

I see many people going to work. All of them don’t understand the purpose of work. They don’t see the structure for what it is. Millions of people work because of something bigger than personal success. I think that higher purpose is the progression/sustainability/persistence of the human race. That’s 2 reasons to go to work. If we go back to the Neo Smith conversation though, our purpose is not to live but to die. We all, then, choose to keep the human race intact. The answer to why we choose to keep the human race intact is unanswerable. After all, the problem is choice.