I am the only one who...

Recently I have been revisiting the wisdom of Victor Frankl, his books and the teachings of others based on his work. An idea that I have been pondering more than the rest is “What is it only I can do?” Part of our significance and the meaning we sense in our lives is based on being able to contribute what only we can do. When I have pondered this question in the past, I believe I was looking at more ultimate and unique callings. Your mind too may drift to unique contributions that have changed the world like Pasteur’s contribution to germ theory and the health that resulted from pasteurization, the miraculous power of vaccines and the power of E=mc2, or perhaps you consider Picasso’s Guernica or Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony… But if our lives are only significant if we make such grand contributions, many of us will not sense that our lives have much meaning.

Today I am realizing this question can be answered in a less dramatic way. Driving in my car, I am the only one who can pay attention to my surroundings and drive this particular vehicle safely. While driving I am the only one who will be deciding if I stop at a restaurant and enjoy a quiet hour to myself or if I go home to spend some extra time with my son. I am the only one who will look into his eyes when he shares his thoughts with me. I am the only one who will respond in that moment with a comment. Suddenly the significance of free will, the meaning and responsibility of my life are evident. God has given me, given all of us this elemental freedom to choose. Frankl noted that even when all other choices have been eliminated, as they were for him in the concentration camps of Nazi Germany, we all have the power to choose our attitude.

What will we bring to this moment? What attitude? What words and actions? What prayer? What is it that only we can do?

#freewill #victorfrankl #meaning #responsibility #significance