Lifetime Goals

850 Words2 Pages

There are some goals that we cannot achieve in our lifetimes, but we still view as important pursuits. Although these goals may at first seem as though they are dependent on future generations, upon closer examination, one can see that it is their intrinsic value that makes them worthwhile. For example, many people dedicate their lives to projects whose goals seem long off. These projects can include those that are not completed yet but have a distinct end goal. We may not have the necessary technology for them, such as traveling to other galaxies, or we may recognize that it will take a long time to complete, such as finding cures to all forms of cancer. There are also those goals that people start working on that could be completed in one’s lifetime, but will not be completed within that specific person’s …show more content…

However, in both cases, even though we know that these projects will most likely not be completed in our lifetimes, we still see them as meaningful pursuits. It is not the fact that these projects will be appreciated by future generations that makes them meaningful, though; it is the act of doing them now. People may find meaning in working on these projects because they enjoy learning or using creative thinking skills to accomplish a task. In the case of the person who wants to travel around the world, that person could find meaning and value in traveling to the limited number of places to which he or she is able. So even if people knew that their efforts would not be appreciated by future generations or that their projects would never be completed, it wouldn’t matter because it is the action of working on the project that gives them meaning. The meaning in these cases doesn’t derive from the completion of the goals, but the value and experience that come from working on

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