power of life

Power of life
If I raise my head a little I see my wife sitting on the sofa by the window, our 2 dogs sleeping on the floor, a couple of flies buzzing, several trees growing outside and a few birds flying around. All that beauty available to me with hardly moving a muscle.

No-one knows how long life has been around on this planet, how widespread it is through the universe or what life will look like in the distant future. Much of this can be fun to hypothesise and imagine and remains, for the most part, the stuff of science fiction.

I grew up during the Cold War and the topic we discussed most passionately in student bars was the likelihood of war and whether we (the ‘good’ guys) and they (the ‘bad’ guys) would destroy each other. Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) was the way we described it and it seemed a reality to our young minds that mankind had the power to destroy the planet. Or if not the planet, at the very least, all life on the planet.

Now, the Climate Change debate seems to have taken over the MAD concept and ‘destroying our planet’ has moved from Cold War rhetoric into Environmental rhetoric.

Let me be clear.

I abhor the wanton destruction of life and irresponsible use of the the world’s resources in the interests of profit.

But we do not have the power to destroy the planet.

I doubt we even have the power to destroy our own species, let alone life in all its forms. Life is deeply rooted into this planet of ours and is stronger than we are – and always will be.

Life itself is here to stay, it is enduring, adaptable and you and I are part of its intricate web. I also believe my life force, my soul if you like, is permanent and immortal.

This is not a reason to abuse our planet but even greater reason to treat life with respect. To be in awe of it, admire it and feel humble in its presence.

It is the strength of life that gives me a sense of purpose and permanence. A conviction that it is worthwhile making an effort to make something out of this life of mine, no matter how small and insignificant it might be in the grand scheme of things.

It is the fragility of life that brings to me this almost overwhelming joy and sadness when my younger daughter loses her first tooth and my elder daughter turns 17 …

… and it’s the power of life that helps me withstand the fact that I was not around to witness either