Yesterday, I wrapped up my work and decided to take a short stroll on my terrace. The main reason was to escape from the never-ending whirlwind of thoughts about my future that usually fills my head. I’m often preoccupied with pondering what’s coming next, even though I’ve heard the advice to “live in the moment” and enjoy the present. But let’s be honest, is that really possible? Our minds are constantly working, using data from the past and present to paint pictures of what the future might hold, even though we can’t predict the next moment.
If you think about it, almost everything in life is uncertain, except for one thing – our eventual passing, Isn’t it ?Whether it’s relationships, money, or career, these things come and go, nothing remains with us forever and we spend a significant chunk of our limited time on this beautiful planet worrying about what’s ahead and regretting what’s behind. It’s like we’re convincing ourselves that we’re here forever. We chase happiness but often end up stuck in sadness. We try to control things we can’t, and that leads to anxiety and depression.
During one of those moments when I was lost in thought, I found myself gazing up at the night sky. The sky was filled with an incredible number of stars, and they shone like radiant diamonds against the dark backdrop. To take my mind off things, I started counting the stars, but I got lost halfway through. As I did this, memories from my sixth-grade science class came flooding back. I remembered learning about the vastness of our universe, how those stars are situated billions of light-years away, and how they only become visible at night when the sun takes a break. It struck me that we’re part of an immense universe where countless galaxies coexist, and our little Earth keeps circling the sun day in and day out. It was like watching a fascinating scene from a real-life science fiction movie right in the theater of my own mind.
This made me wonder why it’s so hard for us to accept simple truths about life, like our own mortality or our tiny spot in the vast universe. Often, we push those fundamental truths aside and get all wrapped up in our own problems. We forget that we’re part of something much bigger and that there’s an entire universe out there.
Isn’t it weird that we perceive our earth as a flat land, despite all the evidence from satellite images and textbooks that its oblate spheroid? Just as I can’t recollect my own birth or visualize my eventual death, these are undeniable aspects of life. I’ve never gazed upon my heart or other internal organs, yet that doesn’t negate their existence.I’m not even sure what I look like. Every reflection in the mirror or image captured by any lens, be it in another human eye or by a camera, is just a reflection of me, but not me. I call this the “perceived reality,” where we tend to believe what we see is the absolute truth, even though actual reality often looks more like fiction.
I believe that, in our heads, we often construct an illusionary world. Maybe it’s because our brains can’t grasp the vastness of existence, or perhaps knowing everything is just too much to handle. We live in this made-up realm, while the true reality is elsewhere. This applies to our problems and worries as well because we often create them by overthinking and believing we can control everything. So, just like the stars that fade when the sun rises, try to see your problems from a distance as tiny specks. Because when a new day begins, your issues might not seem as overwhelming as they did before. It’s worth looking up at the sky from time to time Isn’t it?
