Chit Chat Philosophy

2 Here’s a question for you. How replaceable are you?

1 Everyone in the world is unique. We each have our own part to play in the grand story. That being said – there comes a time when our memories turn to legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten.

2 That’s from The Wheel of Time isn’t it?

1 It sure is. But the great philosopher Robert Jordan makes a poignant point. Life at the macro scale is nothing more than a cycle. Our impact to any age is fleeting at best. Eventually, it is all lost to time.

2 Are there not paragons of history that have sustained through the ages?

1 Sure, you’ve got legends like Siddhartha Guatemala. But even his legend is a speck in the history of the world. We have forgotten so much.

2 What about in the more immediate frame of a single lifetime?

1 Indeed there are people in my life who are impacted by my presence. This can be said for most everyone in the world.

2 If you had never been born – would the world be different?

1 I am not sure anyone can really say for certain their impact on the world. Furthermore, I’m quite certain many of us shape the present in ways that we don’t even realize.

2 Do you believe you can have an impact on the world, even if your name is lost to history?

1 That does seem to track. We make inventions, for example, which are the cornerstone for even grander inventions. And on and on through time. Regardless of the names that go along with them.

2 Does this apply to lineage as well?

1 Yes, of course. Every human is a product of a near-infinite lineage tracing back to the first origins of life.

2 This would seem to contradict your statement that “our impact to any age is fleeting at best”. Do you agree?

1 So it would seem. Perhaps our part to play has a longer lasting impact than I first gave credit. 

2 In what ways might one contribute to the future of the universe?

1 There are many ways a person might impact the future. You could create or discover something. You could produce offspring. Maybe you simply inspire others who go on to make discoveries or contributions themselves.

2 And what about the person who does none of these things?

1 Even the person who makes no discernible discovery or contribution is still a valuable member of society and still a part of the warp and the woof in the wheel of time.

2 How so?

1 Nobody can exist in a vacuum. The mere fact that you are participating in society is cause enough to impact the fate of humanity.

2 Is anyone replaceable?

1 I would not put it like that. Instead, I would say: the story that we write collectively is an amalgam of every person – no matter how small their contributions may seem.

2 I see. Though you still haven’t answered the question. Is anyone replaceable?

1 Nobody is replaceable if you want to produce the exact same story. But the great part of life is that the story is ever changing. There is no right or wrong answer. The wheel wills as the wheel turns.

2 To clarify, you are saying that everyone contributes to the story of life and their part in that story – no matter the scale – is irreplaceable?

1 To tell this story. Yes. Every single contribution is required. However, replaceability does not really matter. To replace someone is simply to tell a different story.