Existential Gratitude: The Bonus of Being 🌱

Seeing my infant daughter draw her first breath of air I’m reminded of how lucky we are to be, at all. There are uncountable miracles in the journey from conception to birth, and beyond. Being is miraculous. So is the fact that we can ponder being at all since we have to invoke non-being to even think about it.

Baby girl is happy to be alive, to encounter color, shape, and the warmth of laying skin-to-skin on our chest for the first time. If the universe ended today, we’d all be glad she got to experience what she did, including the pangs of hunger and the bellies full of gas. The same is true for me and all I've experienced. It's all bonus—not just because death could come at any time, but because existing at all was a wild lottery win.

Many times I forget this. I'm annoyed bc I didn’t sleep enough. My son is screaming because I won’t let him wear his sopping wet shoes to bed. I feel entitled to be treated a certain way. But when I remember the wonder of being, I take no time for granted. I can’t help but feel awe and gratitude.

With love, Jordan