Long ago in college, I saw a poster on the wall just outside my philosophy class with these words in boldface: DO YOU HAVE UNANSWERED QUESTIONS? The flyer gave students instructions on how to make appointments with counselors and the like. A wisecracker wrote this reply underneath: WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE? That memory has remained with me throughout the years and speaks to an age-old question we can only begin to answer by becoming intentional seekers.
In the old days, before the internet, people sought meaning in large institutions, communities of faith, successful businesses, and charismatic people. Unfortunately, many were bitterly disappointed when fatal flaws revealed themselves and exited these previous holders of inspiration and truth. Many young seekers of meaning today turn to Google or social media platforms rather than consulting wise elders or teachers. The World Wide Web lures us down endless rabbit holes of artificial intelligence disguised as harbingers of truth. Unfortunately, the bi-products of these non-human entities beget increased feelings of skepticism, alienation, and emptiness.
From the beginning of time, saints and sages have written, proclaimed, and shown us that a meaningful life cannot be found outside ourselves, rather, it requires an inside job, beginning with the cultivation of humility. We must admit we don’t have all the answers and need wisdom guides to teach us how to launch and navigate the rough waters of the spiritual life. Fortunately, spiritual directors dedicate their lives as midwives to this birthing process. But then it is up to the individual to tenaciously stay on the quest and find others with similar desires. That’s the hard part.
I have a dear friend who has been suffering her whole life with spina bifada. She was able to manage the pain and inconveniences of the illness for decades but now spends most of her days confined to her home. I have never met a more courageous, positive person as she manages the unimaginable. How does she, and so many others with chronic pain, find meaning in suffering? Another age-old question we are currently pondering together. Reason falls short here, but not so the mystical way which centers in the heart and flows out of Love (just another name for God).
The mystical teachings, recorded in Scripture and many other sacred writings, proclaim that meaning surrounds us in the air we breathe, in ordinary, mundane moments of doing laundry, staying up all night with a crying baby, gazing at the leaves falling from the trees in autumn and yes, even in the pain and death we all inevitably endure. Why do so many of us miss this simple good news? Because, unfortunately, we are pathologically busy and distracted. Fortunately, increased attentiveness and heightened appreciation can be cultivated if we take a few minutes each day to pause, breathe, be silent, and say thank you. Then, no matter what happens in the world around us, meaning arises in all the interior, quiet moments; and beloved teachers and companions appear to help us hold the tension.
Seeking Wisdom 