Immortality

I thought I’d blogged about this before. I’ve mentioned living forever and why we die but not the fact that I have met someone who is determined to be one of the first people who will be immortal. I won’t name names just in case it doesn’t come true but you have to admire his ambition. Just think of all those new year’s resolutions to come!

But would you really want to live forever? I don’t think so unless, possibly, if you were to stay healthy with all of your friends and enough money and resources to last for eternity. I’m not too worried by the prospect though as I’m sure it is not going to happen.

Somehow though, the subject came up in conversation when visiting Carl, a client, last week. I think I mentioned the person I had met and things developed from there. 

Carl had an interesting slant. Time is important to humans. Without the pressure it brings nothing would ever get done. If you knew you were going to live forever, there would be no motivation to do anything at all as there would always be the next day and the next. We would be living in a permanent state of mañana. 

The only things that would get done would be those essential to life: eating; drinking; sleeping. Even these might be a problem. Who would grow the crops to make the food? Who would process the juices to make the drink? Indeed, who would even bother to go to the well?

Of course I am assuming that all people would be immortal, though much would hold true if only a few had such luxury. Rather than being a continuous period of leisure, we would find ourselves in a continuous period of boredom, frustration and stress. IN the end I suspect we would gladly trade eternity for a shorter yet more fulfilling and purposeful life.

Time is paradoxical. In order to have the time to get things done we need to restrict the time we have in which to do them.