[Philosophy]

[Sasaki Kojiro]

Our goal in life should be to have as many stories to tell when we lie dying as possible. There are many things that we enjoy in a shallow way. Reading books, watching movies, playing games, browsing the internet. These are all enjoyable but rarely create the better kind of memories. In a movie scene where the main character is ascending a cliff, the director can make the viewer feel the characters fear of heights, and show how far it is to fall. You may remember this scene for a long time (although it is far from certain that you will), but you would remember far more vividly the time you were climbing a cliff. You will remember your heart pounding and the adrenalin pumping, the precarious feeling you get when you can fall at any moment, the weight hanging off your finger tips. Never mind the rope around your waist. A video of your ascent would be tame in comparison to the movie scene. But your memory of it is far more worthwhile.

When you remember this event, you feel some sort of happiness. Ideally you were enjoying yourself at the time. You may have been miserable and scared. But the memory is intense enough to be proof that you lived. We value that which makes us feel alive. I don't mean to dis movies or books, they get you thinking about the world and can show you things that you will never see in real life.

Study has show that amnesiacs with damage to a certain part of the brain cannot imagine the future. When imagining the future we build upon our memory of the past. If someone watches a movie every weekend, then during the week the imagine watching a movie the next weekend and enjoy the anticipation. This is part of what makes life enjoyable or at least bearable during the time you have to work. It stands to reason that the more memorable the events from the past, the more enjoyable the anticipation is. If you could entertain yourself constantly you wouldn't need memories, but that is impossible.

Therefore, we should fill our minds with memories. The brain loves things that are new, and things that are extraordinary. It also loves emotions, for example a football game that you are emotionally invested in is much more memorable than one that isn't. Doing things that are familiar, ordinary, and completely safe are seldom remembered. You will remember the first time you did it, but after doing it twenty times you still only have one real memory, they are bundled together.

For a truly satisfying life you should see as many places, get to know as many people, and do as many things as you can, taking precautions not to block yourself out of other possibilities.

This part I'm pretty sure about. I started this thread for two reasons:

1) I wanted to hear some of the things you remember most vividly. Many times before I've heard someone describe something they enjoyed, tried it out myself, and enjoyed it.

2) I'm not sure where the limit to this is. Can a negative experience be good in the long run? There's a Mark Twain quote that goes "You regret not doing something more than you regret doing something". This is obviously not always true, you regret fracturing your femur in three places more than you regret not going skiing. Clearly there is a line where a behavior becomes to risky to be worthwhile, but where is this line? There are some things that make you unhappy to remember them. Do these give you perspective on the good memories? People say you have to experience death of a loved one to really appreciate the ones who are still alive. Is that true?

*1:45 AM...I'm never more introspective than when I'm supposed to be studying*

[naut]

I remember the time I went absailing, but I have a fear of heights. I'm glad I tried though, because I managed to make it a few metres before I just couldn't take it anymore. Which is much better than I thought I would be able to do.

*1:45 AM...I'm never more introspective than when I'm supposed to be studying*

Likewise.

[Incongruous]

In Spain one time, I must have been only 5. I was walking around the campsite with daddy and some Spanish youths came up. First thing that I said to them was "OSTA LA BISTA BABY!". My apparent lack of linguistic skills made them all laugh out loud, for the next four or five days I'd go and play football with these teenagers. I went walking round the local town with them, they took me to see their families, and I had some really nice sweet kinda thingies I can remember that so vividly.
I suppose that it reminds we're all so similar some times.

[Innocentius]

Our goal in life should be to have as many stories to tell when we lie dying as possible.

Why?

Your post contains many shoulds, like if it was some sort of truth. If your idea of having a good life is making a lot of memories and basically just do a lot of stuff, that's your ideal and not the universal goal in life.

[Rodion Romanovich]

I thought the rule was "he who has most money when he dies wins"

[Rodion Romanovich]

Our goal in life should be to have as many stories to tell when we lie dying as possible.

I disagree. If we're lying on our deathbed, we'll soon be dead and have no use of anything. When you get old: start taking drugs like the grandpa in "Little miss sunshine", is my advice.

Study has show that amnesiacs with damage to a certain part of the brain cannot imagine the future.

I envy them for the happiness they must feel. If there'd be a drug having that effect without side-effects, I wouldn't hesitate to take it.

Can a negative experience be good in the long run?

Good counter-example: Hitler's and Stalin's memories of their drunkard fathers beating them... I guess the answer is no.

People say you have to experience death of a loved one to really appreciate the ones who are still alive. Is that true?

That may be true, but if as in modern culture children are taught to expect other people to always be there loving and helping them, they will often also get mentally damaged by the sudden tragic loss and lose their ability to love at all.

The best is a decent balance of the amount of time and strength of the challenges and successes, as in pre-civilization society (which our mentality is adapted to be most healthy in), or in computer games (whose challenge-success balance is adapted after our brains).

[macsen rufus]

No; the rule is "He who has most money when he dies, still dies"

One memory: free-wheeling down Haleakale at dawn, 40km on a cycle without one stroke of the peddles. Breathtaking.

Or maybe scuba-diving on the Great Barrier Reef - I am the world's most hydrophobic person, I had to screw everything to maximum to do that (probably to do with nearly drowning as a small child), but there's was no way I was going to be content just seeing it from a glass-bottomed boat. I had to deny every instinct in my being, but I did it. I hated it and loved it in equal measure, but I'm sure glad I did it.

As for the things I regret, well, let's just say it cleared up after a couple of pills, and the other test was negative...

The purpose of life is to discover the purpose of life. All you "should" do is be yourself.

[Ronin]

the purpose of life is to live it and not waste time pondering such silly things as "the purpose of life"

[Navaros]

Our goal in life should be to have as many stories to tell when we lie dying as possible.

This seems to be painting an overly-rosey picture of what dying is actually likely to be like.

It is likely that whilst dying one would either:

1. Already have his mind ruined long-before that point via dementia or something like that, thus would not be mentally competent to relay any stories at the point. Probably would not even remember many, either.

2. Would die suddenly without seeing it coming, thus have no time to relay such stories whilst dying.

3. There would be a long time period of being in "death possible to come" state, most of which be would be spent with no visitors present because they have obligations elsewhere they must attend to in their own lives.

[Gregoshi]

I think Sasaki is just saying live life to the fullest. Go out and do something - make some memories.

Years from now I'm not going to look back and think "That one pun I did in the News of the Weird thread was awesome." However, I will still vividly recall one November morning in the mid-70s, when, as a teenager, I sat on a mountain-top deer hunting watching and listening to the world wake up in the valley below as the sun came up. I'll remember that dog barking down on one of the farms. I'll remember the whine of the tires of that solitary car with its headlights searching in dawn's feeble light for some unknown destination as the crisp, cold air carried its story to my awaiting ears up above. Excuse me for waxing poetic, but that is how I remember that wonderful morning. These last few years I've spent too much time in front of this dang computer screen and not enough going out and making a life worth remembering.

Thanks for the kick in the tush Sasaki.

[Papewaio]

In short... SFTS is correct.

[Strike For The South]

In short... SFTS is correct.

AHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHHAAHa

[Caius]

Where is Bijo and his long posts?

Our goal in life should be to have as many stories to tell when we lie dying as possible.

From my experience (look who is talking here!) its true, but we have to live the life.

Why is everyone waiting for? Live today, dont worry for past problems, and say: Nevermind to the future. Can we live with those, how can I call them... facts?

Everyone is looking at his clock, waiting, and waiting. Why do we have to wait for something? Sometimes, its good for waiting. In certain situations of the real life, waiting is the worst thing you can do.

Thats another point I want to add to the post of Sasaki "the always guilty " Kojiro.

Therefore, we should fill our minds with memories.

Memories? It depends. I regret some mistakes in my life. Things that I dont want to talk about. You maybe say: Garci made some bad mistakes. No.
Garcilaso de la Vega el Inca made silly mistakes.

I want to burn those silly mistakes. I can't. Why should I live with them, if I dont want to? Do we really need good memories only?

Another advice is dont planificate in another thoughts. Dont try to be as others expect. Maybe you will fail in this 'point'. There is a complex situation. You and the society. Well, I'm going to bore you, read the following if you want to:

The human is a sociable subject. Humans cant live without comunicating one and other.
There are societies, which have everyone on it. In the process of socialization, the first socialization in special, the little boy learns the rules. Of course, not all the boys in this special stage can do it.

Well, thats the point. We live, but we dont live our own life. We live 'ourlifenadtheotherslife'.

Do whatever you want. Try to not be influentied by society, 'cos global society is wanting you as a money maker, a money compulsive user. That will kill the memory.

I should start to remake my life, with or without mistakes, by having some good memories. Go somewhere peace (not the Frontroom, please ) is the king. Do something exiting, and remember my 0.01 contribution.

I should celebrate for this post. Its my most long post ever! :P

[Bijo]

I question your "philosophy", Sasaki. It seems it is based on much subjectivity.

Your "philosophy" looks a lot like this typical thing called hedonism which is mostly selfish in nature and can potentially include negativities which could very well harm oneself and others and in turn bring about an -- more or less -- unending chain of events of which you do not know all the outcomes (an which you probably wouldn't care for either). In fact, the main thing I notice about this philosophy of yours is hedonism and not much else where Pleasure (for oneself) is the keyword.

[Papewaio]

Actually I think he is advocating the dead opposite of hedonism. He is advocating the pursuit of happiness through self effort.

He is stating that while there are pleasures to be had in things such as movies and games, the greatest pleasures are gained through actual personal experience not through watching another do the act.


As for myself some of my most vivid memories are in nature. Swimming in a mountain stream in New Zealand feeling like my head was in a vice grip. Landing in Australia late at night for the first time and feeling each step as I walked into the fierce dry heat. Hiking in Sumatra and being perched on the side of a mountain waiting for the equipment to finish its measuring cycle. Seven hour speedboat trip up the Mahakam river in Borneo and eating food on a restaurant on a raft... the toilets where just a shed on the downriver side that just dumped straight into the river beneath... working on the Equator and meeting Dayaks...seeing a living volcano in the straights between Sumatra and Java. Driving up a mountain in Taiwan that was so densely covered in Orange's that the scent filled the air in a most pleasant manner... seeing glow bugs for the first time (as opposed to glow worms found deep within caves in NZ).

Those and memories of my son being born and the way he is growing every day.