Prodigal Existence

Some people believe that man is the worst thing that has ever happened to our planet. There is plenty of evidence that we are on our way to making this planet uninhabitable. Exploding populations, rising world temperatures, the ice cap melting, forests shrinking, multiple species disappearance, ocean and air pollution, nuclear self-destruction on the agenda, the list goes on and on. What will be the outcome? Will we have to learn how to survive in space as we search the cosmos for another home before our world caves in around our ears? I remember a high school science experiment with fruit flies. After the experiment I just left my colony container on a shelf. When I returned a month later, all the flies had perished. They had multiplied until they had exhausted all the life-sustaining nutrients in the container.

Last summer my Bride and I went for a Sunday walk on the Seawall, starting at English Bay in Vancouver. The last day of June, it was a beautiful sunny day, with the breezes mitigating the warmth embracing my shoulders. The beach and surrounding green spaces were crowded with hundreds of sun-worshippers, the beauty around me enhanced in my eyes by our bikini-clad sunbathers. Walkers, runners, what-have-you, filled the paths. The high tide lapped against the sea-wall and invaded the beaches as people paddled in the water. Water-boarders, kayakers and sail-boats tickled the horizon. As we walked along through the diverse population that is Vancouver, I could not help but remark on what a perfect day we were enjoying. I remember it well on this sunny day in March, wearing gloves to protect my fingers from turning into icicles.

So, against this background of impending disaster at some future millennium, I cannot help but to be infused with gratitude at our wonderful life. I know that we in North America are among the more fortunate on this planet. I know that my family and my grandchildren in Israel wake up, too often, with news of another act of violence. I know that Europe, its unity in danger, is likely facing turmoil and a problematic future. Asia is ascendant, but too subject to authoritarian governments. Where Russia will come out from its current dark chapter is anyone’s guess. Will China find common cause? I needn’t mention the Middle East and jihadists.

In all these places, individuals and families are carrying on their lives in the same way as we are here. As humans, we find our joys in all the ordinary ways. Living in the moment, there are small pleasures to be extracted from our existence for everyone. I am confident that this is happening billions of times each day.

We are myriad in the way we live our lives. I am confident that most of the creatures on this planet seek to live their lives in fulfilling ways that provide rewards for others as well as themselves. Most of us are not wholly self-centered. That does not mean that we do not have failures of generosity. We all know we do things in our lives, that in retrospect, may not be in keeping with the ethos that we believe governs the generality of our lives. Most of us regret our failures. We struggle to forgive ourselves and make silent promises to do better next time. Like the prodigal son we have the eternal hope that we can return home fully forgiven for our transgressions. (I cover my eyes not to see the evil ones I know are out there.)

As the human race, we are committing all these crimes against the natural forces that sustain us on this planet. Yet, many of us spend our lives trying to right those wrongs. Many are engaged in doing the research that can pull the rabbit out of the hat and find the secrets that may save us from ourselves. Many of us believe that what we hope for will truly happen, and like the prodigal son, we will be forgiven for our crimes and be welcomed home to a salvaged planet. We believe we are good people in our hearts and deserve to be forgiven because of our good intentions. When I walked with my Bride on a sunny day, as we did that day, I was full of hope. Get thee behind me, naysayers!

This is the story of our lives. In our intimate knowledge of our good intentions, we believe we should be forgiven for our failings. In our knowledge of the many good things we do in pursuing our daily existences, we truly believe we are fully worthy of forgiveness for our failings. Aren’t they so minor after all? Stacked up against all the good things that our lives are full of, aren’t our failings minor? Don’t we deserve access to special pleading? Don’t we also deserve that as the human race?

We know we are leading the life of a prodigal on this planet. Can we find the way to do the right things? Can there be forgiveness for our trespasses?

 

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