The Non-Partisan Meaning of Life

Monday's are not inspiring but I received sad news about a friend's son and am forced to contemplate, once again, the meaning of my (our) existence. I feel an intense envy at those whose work allows them to change the world in a profound way. It also seems unjust that many of those people are not particularly admirable-politicians come to mind. Our wonderful elected officials, many whose integrity is questionable, have the power to improve the lives of people all over the world. Or not. Much of what is accomplished in politics is self-serving and partisan without any regard to the greater good. Voters, like myself, are often making choices that are described as "the lesser of two evils". How can we allow this and why do we settle for leaders whose personal agendas don't match those of the general populace? Is it our two party system that gives us candidates that are big on financial resources but low on candor? Candidates that are politically connected but distanced from their constituency. Is it possible to change this? Think Jimmy Carter and that answer would be a resounding no. His presidency was best remembered for what he couldn't achieve mainly because he lacked the support "inside Washington". Maybe by Friday I'll have figured out why we exist, today I am only sure that eventually we all die. Even lousy politicians. I Take solace in my late husband Mark's favorite saying, "At the end of the game, the king and the pawn go back into the same box."