Forever

The concept of forever, drummed into minds of children primarily by religion, is an obstacle to skeptical and practical thought. The forever concept begins the mind's striving for completed perfection over dynamic adaptation. This idea of forever, merged with an imaginary eternity of religion, diffuses the urgency of ethical human beings to actualize their ideals in the moment. 

There is no forever on the human scale. From a galactic perspective, one relatively minor dysfunction in the solar system could totally eliminate all life on this planet in the blink of an eye at any time. The most sophisticated astrophysicist cannot promise that this planet will live out its expected lifespan of some billions of years before its sun obliterates it. Forever is an unrealistic concept. Forever is a useless concept for the truly good and a concept of controlling manipulation for the evil.

The more fully I have embraced this reality, the more readily I have been able to be in the moment in thought and action. The more palpably I experience being a small object on a whirling rock in cold vacuous space, the more intensely I experience pulsating life in the moment. The breathless exhilaration of vulnerable mortality lies at the root of my humanist practice.