What does it mean to be human?
Absolutely nothing and utterly everything. Really how else could I answer this question, a mere tenth grader answering a question that has kept philosophers, religions, men of science, and every human being busy since the moment our race could start thinking. I have just barely to begin to see the world around me, let alone understand it. I haven't even figured out my place in the universe and what I’m supposed to be doing here. To figure this out for an entire 6.7 billion people that share the same characteristics as me but are all individual and different at same time. Not an easy task, but then again nothing we ever get for History is an easy task. So as I sat here in my room waiting for some type of revelation to come to me, I remember two things. The first one being that we are extremely tiny and insignificant things floating in the nothingness of space, not even a speck in the galaxies so far way from us. The second thing being extraterrestrial life. If we exist than something in our ever shrinking, or ever expanding, universe must be out there, how would they be different from us. Still no revelation
Religion provides answers to these questions and add meaning to people’s life. Some people just need to be told what to believe and think because they need that type of control in their life. It sounds so much better that everything in our life is planned out and controlled by an omnipotent and merciful, for the most part, deity, than we floating an inconsequential rock in the bowels of space. Religion provides guidance that many people seek and redemption and salvation for all they do. Religion is wonderful and terrible. It has caused the biggest wars and destroyed the most amount of people ever, yet almost all major belief systems emphasize the basic philosophy of loving thy neighbor as you love thyself. Does this mean that as a general rule Human beings cannot follow directions, maybe.
The dictionary defines being a human being as “a man, woman, or child of the species Homo sapiens, distinguished from other animals by superior mental development, power of articulate speech, and upright stance.” Honestly, this is by far the worst definition I have ever found in a dictionary. The only difference from us and a caterpillar is because we can walk up straight? Superior mental development, just ask Mr. Kinzer about our “superior mental development” and how we continue to amaze him with our “intellect.”
Being able to empathize, predict, and to hope. I think these are the biggest and most descriptive traits of human beings.
We have long ago realized that we are all connected. It is a fact that has been lost and found once again. Science has begun to prove what philosophers have always hoped for. We are all related, this makes empathizing such an easier job. My ability to put myself in someone else’s shoes using nothing else but my imagination is an all too incredible phenomenon. It is as if I immerse myself in their essence, actually becoming them. Empathizing allows me to relate, emote and reason. It helps me understand what someone else might be going true, making me a more understanding and patient. But empathizing has its limitiations. For example as I watch the news clips about Haiti I cannot easily empathize with them. I can sympathize but that is not nearly as interesting or insightful attribute.
If I'm sitting at the table and I see a glass close to the edge of it, I will move it. For two reasons, one it might fall, and two if it does I’ll get blamed for it and get in trouble. This seemingly frivolous task is one that is phenomenal. We can look at something and imagine and predict what might happen to it. It’s truly like seeing into the future, prophesying. Up until now, no scientist has ever found reason to believe that any other organism on this earth can perform this task.
In times of total darkness for people, there is always a little part of you hoping praying, asking for your situation to change. Hoping for peace, hoping for love, hoping for survival. There is an old Greek Myth that explains that a young woman, Pandora, was given a box, which she was told by the gods of Olympus under no circumstances to open. Pandora being extremely curious opened the box and let all of the things that plague our world today out of the box. Jealousy, accusation, distrust, lies, scheming, gossip, despair, scolding, hate, old age etc.etc. All of these things had been unknown to man. Horrified Pandora shut the box just in time to keep Hope from flying away. We would never loose hope. But we cannot only rely on hope, action needs to be taken for anything to occur in our lives. Simply thinking about something, will not instantaneously make it appear.
I still don’t know what makes us human, and I don’t think I ever will, but I do know that my life and all of our lives no longer belong to us alone; they belong to anyone and everyone who needs us.
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