When Realizing You're a Speck in the Universe Works in Your Favor

“Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.” 

― Viktor E. Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

Assuming you knew nothing of Viktor E. Frankl and his book, Man's Search for Meaning, I would say you'd be tempted to read what was inside just from reading the title. Well, you wouldn't be alone. Over 10 million copies of Frankl's book have been sold and it was named one of "the ten most important books in the United States" by the Library of Congress. As of today, Man's Search for Meaning is the #1 top selling book on Amazon's book selection on Counseling.

The question that stands is --why? I could guess that aside from getting a glimpse into Frankl's time in a Auschwitz concentration camp, there is a greater reason for the book's success.

All man, in one form or another, is on a quest to find the meaning of their life.

The sheer number of copies sold shows our yearning for meaning and purpose in our lives. And if you're anything like me, this thought of finding meaning in your life before it's too late (aka death) does not settle well in our minds. I can remember losing sleep countless nights thinking about where my meaning could possibly be hiding. Is being happy my purpose in life? But what about serving others? Or suffering for a cause greater than yourself?

What is the meaning of life?

I still don't know. But after daydreaming, reflecting, thinking, over thinking, and stressing over this question for months on end, I've finally come to an understanding of how to deal (instead of answer) this question. And it comes from understanding...astronomy?

When times are tough, I use basic astronomy to get myself of out the funk. First, I lay quietly and recognize where I am in relation to my current location, like my house. Second, just like zooming out on a Google Map, I see where I am in relation to my city block. Then, the entire city, state, country, and the globe.

But the beauty comes when I imagine myself floating in space, looking back at Earth. I look around me and all I see are stars, planets, and darkness. And in that moment, I utter the words of the outspoken astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson, "We are all stardust".

I realize in that moment that I truly am nothing but a particle with thoughts. And the problems I face, which seem so large and overwhelming, also begin to look microscopic in relation to the galaxy.

Take a minute and imagine if you could physically hold the burden of finding meaning in your life on your shoulders. How heavy would it be? Would it be so heavy that it could literally make you fall over? Now think about this 'meaning matter' in comparison to the rest of the universe. It's simply becomes just another floating particle in space.

Once you see yourself as a speck in the universe, you can begin to make it work in your favor.

When you zoom out of your life, you see that the burden to find meaning and purpose is present (in that it exists in your mind) but it is physically non-existent. You realize that meaning is not something to be found, but is something that is readily available whenever the mind decides it is ready to see it.

As Frankl states,"...man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked".

You hold the power to determine how to live your life and what the purpose of that life will become. Don't let the suffering and problems disguised as giants fog up your mind. In relation to everything else, you will see them for what they are -- simply stardust.

Onwards and Upwards,
Nadine