98th Edition
I’ve always been very interested in the idea of discovery. As a young boy I dreamed of discovering or inventing something completely new. One morning when I was about eight years old, my sister burned the toast. I thought it would be great to invent a toaster that would shut off before the toast burned. If only I had followed through there might be a toaster named after me today… Maybe every young boy dreams of invention and discovery… Recently I finished a biography of Albert Einstein. Fascinating story, which I enjoyed despite being baffled by a good bit of it, well, nearly all of the details related to his discoveries in Quantum Physics and Relativity. I long ago realized, my mind just wasn’t made to understand this kind of stuff.
But still, the longing to discover, or perhaps to create something new, has never left me. As I read the last chapter of his biography it dawned on me that there are paths to discovery that aren’t based on science. Writing a story that has never been written before is one of them. So is reaching a deeper level of relationship with another person, or even within ourselves. Aren’t there things about ourselves that no one else knows, perhaps we don’t even know but can someday discover? There is, obviously, an endless possibility to create something new within music and other forms of art. Unfortunately for me, like science, I have zero aptitude in those two areas.
Then, thankfully, there is spiritual discovery. It is always possible to discover something about God that no one has yet discovered, in a personal sense, perhaps even in a universal sense. Has God revealed all of himself to mankind, or is there more to learn and experience? Just how does God decide when to reveal more about himself? Interesting questions, even a little frightening. Discovery, naturally, is part of any serious faith journey.
People with a longing to discover tend to have essential common characteristics. The first is that they are genuinely curious. They like to understand how things work, how others have succeeded or failed. How change occurs, suddenly or slowly. This fascination tends to make them outliers, nonconformists, and unconventional thinkers. At the same time, even when they don’t fit in, they can make the world more interesting for other people.
Secondly, they are doggedly determined. Like Edison who is famous for this quote related to inventing the lightbulb – “I have not failed 10,000 times—I’ve successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work”. What makes some people determined to keep trying despite repeated failures when others have long ago given up? I’m not really sure, but I suspect it is something deep within them, likely something they might struggle to explain. Even so, the presence of this inner calling is undeniable. When these people finally achieve the success they have strived for we admire them greatly. Prior to success, their relentless determination attracts all kinds of emotions including sympathy, pity, and bewilderment. They may even force us to ask ourselves about our own pursuits – Did I quit too soon?
On a parallel track with my lifelong interest in discovering or creating something unique, is a fear of irrelevancy as well as eventual and unavoidable decline. In theologian Tony Campolo’s study of people over the age of 85, one of the things common to them was that they wanted to do something that would last beyond their lifetime. Immortality. Don’t we all want it in some form or fashion?
Some people lived in a way that they will never be forgotten. People like Abraham Lincoln and Babe Ruth, and many others. Can we establish something that lasts beyond our lifetime without achieving fame? There are a few people in my life I will never forget, but none of them are famous. All were caring and honest, principled individuals, who lived with purpose. All were authentic. My sense is it never occurred to any of them whether they were going to be long remembered or soon forgotten. Maybe we can achieve immortality only when we aren’t searching for it… Maybe I’ve discovered something… Even more important than a burn-proof toaster.
Please help me grow my readership by forwarding this to a friend(s). In the meantime, stay tuned for my next newsletter. Thanks
Michael Kayes
*These views are my personal opinions and are not the viewpoints of any company or organization.