HACKER Q&A
📣 jackallis

How are you guys finding meaning in your life?


How are you guys finding meaning in your life?


  👤 mindcrime Accepted Answer ✓
My belief is that we choose the meaning in our lives, not such much "find" it. As the old saying goes "The meaning of life is a life of meaning." You can interpret that many ways, and my interpretation is that we choose to live a "life of meaning" by defining that meaning for ourselves as individuals.

But I'm also a radical individualist and something of an existentialist in general philosophical terms. And as an atheist I believe that there was nothing but oblivion before I was born, and will be nothing but oblivion after I'm dead. So all that matters is what happens "goal line to goal line" so to speak. So I choose to live a life trying to do the things that matter to me and that satisfy my own beliefs. But I'm not arguing for pure hedonism or anything. Part of what "matters to me" is exactly "leaving the world a better place", and I hope that something I do in my lifetime has a net effect of making that so, even if in no more than a microscopically small sense.


👤 fluxinflex
We're all made of space matter, the ingredients for planets, suns and universes, ancient matter is within us all.

That matters, that matters as we play our part and we become part of the intricate workings of the universe. We become a small but important part of the universe, without us, you and me, the universe would be a different place.

The universe is a vast collective of matter, antimatter, dark-matter and us. So much matter that we sometimes lose sight of the most important matter in the universe, in our existence. That being the abundant but regularly overshadowed doesn't matter.

Doesn't matter constitutes the vast majority of our lives. Be it sleeping, eating, shitting or dying. It doesn't matter is what shapes us and our lives, no one cares. And that doesn't matter.


👤 dieselgate
My true life passion is building/engineering/fixing things - whether it’s software (day job or not), a vehicle, a building structure, some metal project, sailboat, furniture etc. That’s what I like to spend my time doing the most and it gives me much joy and satisfaction.

Personal relationships, volunteer work (currently with under-18 youth), watching the stars/sunset/sunrise, speaking a non native language, learning etc are all enjoyable facets of life as well. So much more


👤 dylanhassinger
Foster Parent

Saving up money to buy land and start homesteading off-grid


👤 fluxinflex
"Ask HN: What are we even chasing?" - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34519487

similar question.


👤 joral
I have a couple of very good friends, volunteer in a support group, and otherwise play badminton, which is fun and protects well against losing sight of the essential.

👤 ilrwbwrkhv
Don't need meaning in life. Just live.