Big Words

Vocabulary has never been a strong point of mine.  The only words I actually remember from all those vocab tests in school are vex and effervescent.  Oh wait, I think I also had juxtapose, plethora, and myriad as vocab words as well.  That makes 5.  As a university student, I've been exposed to a myriad of new words and phrases, many of which I've heard multiple times in a plethora of classes but they just don't seem to stick in my head.  Words like machiavellianism, empirical (ok I lied...that one finally sunk in this semester...), heuristic, catharsis, hedonism...the list goes on.  Maybe one of these days I'll get it...or I'll graduate, whichever comes first :)

But anyway, my freshman year we discussed the concept of existentialism in one of my classes.  I don't remember what was said but I remember thinking, "Hey, I'm an existentialist!"  It was a great revelation for me.  Unfortunately, if ever I told people, I could never back it up with why because I didn't know what one was, I just knew I was one.  Well, once again this concept is coming to surface in a class this semester.  Maybe this time I will actually remember long-term what it means.  For now, here's my idea of it:

• We each have the responsibility to make our lives meaningful and to live it passionately and sincerely.
• We have the power to rise up out of our circumstances and become better.
• We should be authentic in our actions and understand that different actions have different consequences or value.
• In order to have full meaning to life, we must understand and accept death.

The last point is particularly interesting to me.  Several years ago, I had an assignment in one of my classes to write my own obituary.  Most of the students kind of shuddered at the thought of that but i was excited for it (I know, I'm weird, but just go with it).  As I wrote it, I found myself really contemplating what I wanted the purpose of my life to be.  It helped me set goals for the kind of life I wanted to live so that people would be able to say those things about me in my obituary.  So I gained more meaning in my life by understanding death.  Anyway, just a thought.  

Whether you're an existentialist or not, it doesn't make much of a difference to me.  But this philosophy has helped me to figure things out.  Next time the professor is using big words, I hope I can remember what they mean...  :)