Capturing the Perfect Apex

What gives your life meaning?

The first time I confronted that question directly was in an Ethics class in college.  Of course, for most of my life prior to that I had been unknowingly dancing with that inquiry as an explorer of sorts; propelled by the burning desire to understand more about the world around me.  I learned early on that it is important to have reasons for why things happen; why bad things happen to good people, why good things happen to "bad" people, why we exist at all when we just as easily could not have existed at all.  Yep, I was one of those annoying kids who is always asking "why?"  

As I've gone through life, I've come to understand two very fundamental truths about myself: 

1. I have an unwavering sense of purpose toward contributing something positive to the world.

2. I am only truly happy when I feel like I am an active participant in a meaningful activity, relationship, or exchange of ideas.

That's where motorcycling comes in.  Now I won't say that riding a motorcycle is some noble venture that automatically and always makes the world a better place every time someone throws a leg over a bike.  I mean, motorcycling is currently the mode of carrying out a great purpose in far off lands where people are stricken by sickness and without access to life-saving medications - see also; Riders for Health ... no really do it... see it... click the link ... my blog will still be here when you get back... hell, it will probably be the last blog posted for at least another week or two while I come up with new ideas of things to ramble about. They do incredible things and they could use all the support they can get *nudge-wink*.  

However, I must shamefully confess that I am not an enlisted Rider for Health; I don't have the honor of working for such an awesome organization. I am a very strong supporter of their cause though.  Instead, I am merely one everyday person; an active participant of meaningful activity.  I'm sure you've all gathered the point in how much I love riding.  If you haven't, well then I suppose this is your first visit to the blog.  You might be interested in taking a few minutes to catch up on the previous yammering posts about how amazing riding a motorcycle is.

Today, after a spirited ride with an old friend who recently got himself back into riding after a considerable hiatus, we sat in the bar of our usual restaurant discussing the topic of meaning. I have long hypothesized (in agreement with many great thinkers before my time) that the problem with our world today is that so many people are attempting to desperately navigate through life without having any sense of purpose at all for why they exist.  Hell, some people have probably never even directly confronted the question that I've posed above, and for an alarmingly huge number of people who have, they have turned and ran straight to the psychiatrists office for a prescription to help ease the anxiety of not having a clue as to how to respond to life's most pressing question: what gives your life meaning? 

I don't mean to imply that my fundamental truths will apply to all people; and really, they don't even completely address how I live my life or how I overcome the obstacles, or how I carry out my sense of purpose (that part is a work in progress). But I think that they are a good starting point for how to narrow down the next pressing question of what to do with this finite and precious resource that we know as time; the most valuable currency on the planet.

As we sat in the bar chatting casually about the human condition (only the most lighthearted of topics for us, folks! Ha!), a football game came on the plasma screens and the other patrons lit up with enthusiastic cheers and jeers as the game (and our conversation) progressed. One might argue that attempting to have such a conversation in the bar during football season is a major error in planning, but I beg to differ.  If anything, it was a beautiful irony to the topic at hand: here we were among a crowd of people who were not actively participating in the game (see also; meaningful activity) but who were instead actively (and animatedly) spectating a meaningful activity in much the same way that I might spectate a MotoGP or Isle of Mann race; and of which begs the question: to what extent must we actively participate in life before purpose begins to manifest itself in our lives? I suppose my response might be that it all lies in how connected we feel to the activity that we are participating or spectating in.

Case in point: Last year I had the privilege of working with a local track day organization filling in as the photographer.  It was an excellent opportunity to get some practice on my DSLR doing sports photography of my favorite pastime.  As I decided where I would stand, I replayed my own previous experiences on the track through my head.  I chose a couple of spots where I felt I could best capture the lean angles (because let's face it... everyone wants that amazing corner shot).  What I found, even as I wasn't actually riding, was that my connection with riding transferred over to my sense of purpose as a photographer in what I wanted to provide to this small community of active participants. Thus, my meaningful connection with motorcycling also made me more equipped to contribute something meaningful: capturing that moment of someone else's perfect apex. 

After the photos were provided to the riders at that day's event, I received a lot of really good feedback about my photos. Of course, I took great pride in the fact that my contribution wasn't a complete failure.  But it has also reinforced the point that if we want to make meaningful contributions in life, if we want to have meaning in our lives, we have to first be willing to actively participate.