Perhaps it was the fact that I read this on the plane ride home from El Salvador, but in reading My Own Life by Oliver Sacks, a slew of question popped into my head about how I plan on living my life and standing by the decisions I make. If anything this article, coupled with the experiences that I had in El Salvador showed me that perspective is everything.
In the article, Sacks brings up a point that in hearing the news that he has terminal cancer, he soon thereafter felt a sort of detachment from politics and the issues of the future. These problems are no longer his, and it was now his duty to live the remainder of this life to the fullest. As we progress throughout our lives, our perspective greatly changes as we mature and grow as an individual. The way we view the world one day may dramatically change the next should a massive event like the death of a family member or the birth of a child take place.
One of my favorite essayists is Paul Graham, who made his name as a Silicon Valley entrepreneur. Throughout the past decade, he’s written several hundred essays on topics ranging from Parallel Computing to the idea of what success is. While reading “My Own Life”, I was reminded of his essay “What You’ll Wish You’d Known”, which is the transcript of a speech he gave as the commencement speaker at his former high school. In his paper, he talks about his idea of what it means to be successful and to pursue your goals. The central point of the essay is that in order to do something well, you have to love it. The difficulty comes in finding what it is you love to do.
The common theme between Sacks and Graham’s work is that in order to live without regrets, you have to live life very intensely. Graham argues that in order to find fulfillment and purpose, you have to find what it is you love to do. Sacks comes from more of a perspective of "I've live my life to the fullest, and as a result, I look back fondly on my life without regrets". While both present slightly different perspectives, they both ultimately are saying that if you live life to it's fullest, you'll find happiness.
Evan,
ReplyDeleteHow you explained Sacks' article reminded me of our conversation during class last week regarding happiness. I believe that in order to be happy, an amount of love for what you do, the people around you, the world, and for yourself is required. When an event as drastic as death ensues, it is hard. I think that Sacks' accurately said that in order for this event to not seem as sad, living life to the fullest each and everyday will ensure that when it does come, one will be full of fond memories and happiness for the work and life they are soon going to leave behind. What better experience than El Salvador for this article to really connect to and contemplate. Thanks for sharing,