FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Editorials by Robert Kirwan

  
I Would Rather Live My Life Believing…     
  
   Have you ever been involved in an argument or debate with someone and just couldn’t find the right words to back up your position? Of course you have. There are some things in this world that are very hard to explain, and when you are confronted by another person who doesn’t accept your belief, it is sometimes impossible to find convincing points that will change his mind. Worse, when you have trouble convincing others of your beliefs, you sometimes begin to doubt yourself.
  
   Think back to days when we were much younger than we are now.  The tough questions we faced consisted of, “How do you know there is a Santa Claus? How do you know the Easter Bunny exists? How do you know there is a tooth fairy?” We all hung on to those beliefs as long as we could, but in doing so, it often became necessary to argue with others who didn’t believe.
  
   As we got a bit older, we found ourselves faced with questions like, “How will I know I when I find the right person to marry?  How do I know that there is such a thing as true everlasting love?” 
  

     Eventually, you find out that there is no Santa Claus; there is no Easter Bunny; there is no tooth fairy; you see many marriages, and sometimes your own, end up in divorce; and often the people you love end up hurting you very deeply. Most of what you firmly believed as truth turns out to be false. You may even develop a tendency to become skeptical about everything and wonder if anything you believe in makes sense.
  
    Without a doubt, one of the most difficult questions that we must deal with as human beings is, “How do we really know that there is life after death?” In other words, how can you be so certain that when you die there is “an after life” – another existence that we call heaven.
  
   This is a question that we struggle with all of our life. To believe in life after death is something that requires a tremendous amount of faith because it is something for which we have no concrete evidence as proof. Nevertheless, the other day I came across one simple little sentence that I wish I would have discovered years ago. One simple little sentence that must have been said by a person who was having a discussion with a “non-believer” who just wouldn’t accept any of the arguments being put forward. One simple little sentence that must have ended that conversation very quickly.
  
  The sentence:  “I would rather live my life as if there is a God, and die to find out there isn’t, than to live my life as if there isn’t, and die to find out there is.”
  
   What a profound philosophical statement! Imagine if we applied that very same philosophy to other areas of our life.
  
   When I was arguing with my friends about whether or not there was a Santa Claus, I wish I would have said, “I would rather continue to believe in Santa Claus and get gifts from him every Christmas, than not believe in Santa Claus and stop getting gifts.” (by the way, I still get gifts every Christmas from Santa Claus, so I will never stop believing)
  
   When I was arguing with my friends about whether or not there was an Easter Bunny, I wish I would have said, “I would rather continue to believe in the Easter Bunny and find chocolate candy and treats on Easter morning than not believe in the Easter Bunny and stop getting those Easter morning goodies”.
  
   And so, now that I am older, and much wiser, “I would rather live my life as if everyone I meet wants to become my friend, and find out that they don’t, than live my life as if everyone I meet doesn’t want to become my friend, and find out that they did.”
  
   “I would rather live my life as if the people I love, love me as much as I love them, and find out that they don’t, than live my life as if the people I love don’t love me, and find out that they did.”
  
   Finally, “I would rather live my life thinking that all people I meet are genuinely good, and find out that they aren’t, than live my life thinking that all people I meet are bad, and find out that they were good.”
  
    Who says your personal philosophy of life has to be complicated?
  
 Have a good week!
 
 

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