Impermanence

All of childhood was spent in the seat of a truth about the permanence of being – the lives we’re meant to build, the relationships that should bloom, careers that should define us, the thoughts that shape our minds, the long ranging & seemingly irreversible consequences of our actions.

Growing up reaffirmed the same as we built businesses – to treat them as going concerns – because, well, the demise of it isn’t an option and we must function as optimists. Or whether we entered wedlock with innumerable vows about the infiniteness of the bond and the two intertwined lives. Or formed friendships which were meant to last till eternity.

And yet, in the theme of long term planning, we found that nothing is really meant to be so permanent. It isn’t the if, but the when. History teaches us enough about the trajectory of humanity and how little remains. All that is created/ born ultimately perishes. And such is the nature of all that we experience – moments, relationships, perspectives and feelings. All that remains are memories which, ironically enough, as per science, fade as well.

Why then are we so hung up on building for permanence?

Because we like moving goals, something to look forward to, to keep us going. Because this is an innate optimism in human wiring.

Does losing this belief make it easier to live in the here and now? It’s perhaps more meaningful to live and appreciate the capsules of moments which need not be strung together nor have a flowing meaning to a larger vision of life.

Grieving the loss of a notion of permanence could lead to lower expectations and greater acceptance of life as it is meant to unfold. The uncertainty of the future may be unsettling, but it allows for new experiences which aren’t yet set in stone in the narrative you’ve defined for yourself.

Cherishing what was while it lasted, and looking forward to all there will be.