There’s a lot happening out there. From the discovery of the
infamous Higgs Boson (aka the god particle) in the world of particle physics,
to the disgusting display of disrespect for human life in Colorado, it all
seems beyond our understanding, and in many ways, it is.
Like a lot of people, I have had many conversations among
close friends about life in general and the most common questions go like
this: How do we maximize this chance
without wasting too much time within the forum of our minds, trying to answer
the unanswerable? How much faith should we have in destiny? How am I ever going
to find this “magic connection” with someone else? What is this “magic
connection” supposed to be anyway? How many cross-fit, boot camps, mountain
runs, hot yoga, spinning, goat push-ups, frog jumps, chicken squats did you do
this week?
On July 4th, 2012, scientists and physicists around
the globe were creaming themselves. The Higgs Boson, the last missing piece of
the puzzle in the standard model of particles was said to have been discovered
by the crazy, smart people at CERN in Geneva.
Did they pull this thing out of a hat, hold it in their hands and pinch
its cheeks? Not really. The LHC, (Large Hadron Collider) is the biggest and
most powerful particle accelerator this side of the solar system. Basically,
this titanic machine slams a ton of elementary particles together, recreating
the conditions in the Big Bang. By a ton of particles, I mean 800 trillion
particle collisions. By the way, the LHC is only operating at half power right
now. Jesus. The Higgs Boson is said to be the particle which gives mass to all
other elementary particles. This would be the most important discovery in
science in the last 40 years. I say “would be” because the LHC registered a “sigma
5,” which is the gold standard in physics for a discovery, but those nit
picking scientists have to be 100% sure, and right now, they’re at 99.9999999%.
On July 20th, 2012 the horrible and unthinkable
shootings happened in Aurora, Colorado. I won’t go into much detail on this
disastrous event. We’ve all read the articles a million times over, and I
always feel disgusted after reading them. I just wanted to compare this event to the
previously mentioned scientific discovery because it makes our psyche travel
through our full spectrum of emotions, which brings me to my point after all
this babbling…
Much like the physicists and scientists hoping to unify all
theories into a “Theory of Everything,” we, as members of the human race,
should do the same. Not out there, but in here, inside yourself. In order for
the Higgs to have been discovered, countless experiments were put to the test,
and countless failed. Physicists didn’t dig up a hole in the ground and give up
because the Higgs wasn’t in there. They searched everywhere; the whole spectrum.
By everywhere, I mean the observable universe. They took their findings from
all their ideas and experiments, the failed ones included, and slowly
engineered a path which would most likely bring them to the pot of gold. The
next big thing and I mean BIG, would be confirming a formula for the theory of
everything. From the most distant star systems, to the smallest particle, this
formula would explain it. I’m going to take it one step further here. Yes, me,
the everyday Joe that burns a salad.
There’s no theory of everything. Not for humans anyway.
Science could explain a lot, and faith could keep us on the right moral track; unless
you’re an extremist in which case, well…that never has a happy ending. The most
frequently asked life questions usually have no answer, or at least no one
answer. With the wealth of knowledge that can be absorbed today, we should be concerned
with building our library, rather than making sure that all the books are on
the right shelf. Like one theoretical physicist said, “We are a type zero
civilization.” This means we are still in the learning phase of human
existence. Goals are important, don’t get me wrong. Aiming to be the best you
can be is intrinsic to our well being, but what lives inside is a completely
different spectrum. In my opinion, this inner spectrum has no meaning to its
existence. It simply exists. It’s there to remind us of the constant hunger we
should have for knowledge, for experiences and for digesting all the colors in the
spectrum. No emotions should be closed
off, no doors locked and no fear to crumble. From the smile I got when I heard
that CERN had discovered the Higgs, to the sadness and total shock I felt when
I heard of the Colorado shootings, my spectrum and my library grew. It’s not
enough just to read or watch the news. Take a second. Breathe it in, and put
yourself in that movie theater in Colorado. Put yourself at the helm of the
LHC, being the first to read out the findings that could possibly change the world
forever. Run that extra mile, turn right instead of left all the time and thank
whichever god you believe in that you’re aware of your existence. Remember, we
are the only species on this planet with a conscious awareness. Build your dream sequences and don’t fear the
nightmare.
Stop reading and start learning. When you get home at night,
take a second to look up. Insignificance breeds character. Never hate yourself
for tossing and turning in bed with a million questions. Instead, make it a
point. Not everyone builds their spectrum the same way. Some people are forced
into starting earlier in life, and some people start while they’re staring out
the window of a room in their old folk’s home. Some people put an eternity of
emotions into a breakup, and some people move on to the next one on the way
home. Whatever your approach, always look to build, but expect and welcome the
collapse. As a “type zero civilization,” we shouldn’t put too much pressure on
ourselves to finding all the answers. We should enjoy this infant stage. Touch,
grab, eat, smell - everyday for the first time.
With insatiable desire,
nothing - becomes EVERYTHING.
