My head hurts now

I remember a conversation with a newly made friend during the retreat required for us graduating students at the time. By the way, I’m finally done with law school. I have graduated, and even that sounds underwhelming. Also the Las Vegas fam is back in Manila. That’s probably why I’ve been neglecting my inner thoughts for a while. I have been preoccupied.

Anyway, during the said retreat, I found myself in deep discussion with, who might as well be a stranger at that point. Hesitantly, I mentioned reading Nietzsche and that caught her attention. She asked me further, “What’s your religion?” Questions like this I have prepared an answer for. I already know what I want to say but I was careful. After all, religion is not something you discuss out in the open.

I told her my confusing thoughts and it eventually lead to another friendly debate about the current topic on the white board. It read, “What is your purpose in life?”

I told her I disagree with the question. It implies that you believe you have a purpose in the first place, that each of us have pre-written biographies, and that every downfall we encounter leads us to this grand purpose that can only be set forth by God himself.

Her take was, she believes God has a purpose for us, a pre-written destiny. That every little detour leads exactly to that destiny. For example, God exterminated the dinosaurs so people could exist. The coming of the asteriod was a detour and the existence of humans is the destiny.

I countered, “Well what about human nature?” The world has a natural tendency to adapt. In the dinosaur example, there is a pre-determined point in the future that gives reason to the past. But I said, “What if the future is the reason for the past? And the past is the determined point.” In argument, what if the asteroid hitting earth is the determined point, at which, by reason of such, the world adapted to it giving rise to the human race. The extinction of the dinosaurs is the reason we exist. Not that the reason we exist is because of the extinction of the dinosaurs.

In a more personal example, if you are laid off from work, my friend’s argument is that it is a redirection made by God for a grand purpose. Upon finding another job and settling in on the job, you have found God’s purpose. Whereas, in my argument, what if you are laid off from work and by human nature and instinct for survival, you look desperately for another job. Naturally, you will find a replacement and you will adapt to your new reality. You being laid off is the reason you looked for a new job. Not that the reason you found your new job is because you had to be laid off.

Does that make sense? My head hurts now.