Humanists/Naturalists: What gives your life meaning?
November 16, 2011 at 3:38 am
(This post was last modified: November 16, 2011 at 4:04 am by Jackalope.)
Over the years, I've been pondering the meaning of all of this (waves hand around), and the best I've come up with is that we find our own personal meaning in life, whatever that may be.
Theists often accuse us (the godless heathens) of having no meaning in our lives.
So the question to the atheists / humanists / naturalists here is this:
What gives meaning to your personal life? Share your story.
For as long as I can remember, I've been fascinated by the ocean - the abundance of life at the shoreline, and hidden beneath the surface. As a child, I wanted to be able to explore this hidden world - an environment completely alien and hostile to human life.
In 2001, I became a certified scuba diver. It was not an easy thing for me to do - I never have been a strong swimmer, and I have a natural fear of drowning, and the thought of sharks lurking just out of site gave me the willies. Still, I persevered through it and was free to explore the world hidden beneath the surface of the sea - at least the portions within the limits of my training.
Over the next ten years, I dove in all kinds of environments: from warm tropical reefs to near-freezing pristine alpine lakes, caverns and wrecks - but mostly in the nearby waters of Puget Sound and Hood Canal in the state of Washington, USA. I picked up a lot of additional training along the way, and in September of 2010 earned my Master Scuba certification.
Throughout all of these experiences, my love of the ocean grew, and I became more and more aware of the environmental concerns that our oceans and seas face - some as a result of human activity, and some a result of natural phenomenon.
I became an advocate for the sea - passing along my concerns to people I know, making them aware of issues that many are unaware of: the island of debris in the Pacific, the horrible practice of shark finning, whaling, overfishing, pollution... the list goes on. I'm not particularly vocal in my activism - but I do try to spread the word when the opportunity presents itself, and I donate to environmental causes.
So in effect, the hobby that I love so much led me to something more meaningful - even if the difference I can make is immeasurable, I know that I have made some difference.
That's one thing that gives meaning to my life.
Theists often accuse us (the godless heathens) of having no meaning in our lives.
So the question to the atheists / humanists / naturalists here is this:
What gives meaning to your personal life? Share your story.
For as long as I can remember, I've been fascinated by the ocean - the abundance of life at the shoreline, and hidden beneath the surface. As a child, I wanted to be able to explore this hidden world - an environment completely alien and hostile to human life.
In 2001, I became a certified scuba diver. It was not an easy thing for me to do - I never have been a strong swimmer, and I have a natural fear of drowning, and the thought of sharks lurking just out of site gave me the willies. Still, I persevered through it and was free to explore the world hidden beneath the surface of the sea - at least the portions within the limits of my training.
Over the next ten years, I dove in all kinds of environments: from warm tropical reefs to near-freezing pristine alpine lakes, caverns and wrecks - but mostly in the nearby waters of Puget Sound and Hood Canal in the state of Washington, USA. I picked up a lot of additional training along the way, and in September of 2010 earned my Master Scuba certification.
Throughout all of these experiences, my love of the ocean grew, and I became more and more aware of the environmental concerns that our oceans and seas face - some as a result of human activity, and some a result of natural phenomenon.
I became an advocate for the sea - passing along my concerns to people I know, making them aware of issues that many are unaware of: the island of debris in the Pacific, the horrible practice of shark finning, whaling, overfishing, pollution... the list goes on. I'm not particularly vocal in my activism - but I do try to spread the word when the opportunity presents itself, and I donate to environmental causes.
So in effect, the hobby that I love so much led me to something more meaningful - even if the difference I can make is immeasurable, I know that I have made some difference.
That's one thing that gives meaning to my life.
