What is the purpose of your life?
In a Commentary elsewhere on this page, the question is asked by columnist David Brooks, who invites readers to post responses on a designated web site.
Spirituality has been defined as that which gives your life meaning and purpose. By this definition, spirituality is not necessarily linked to religion, although it may be.
Spirituality is the energy that infuses thoughts, attitudes and actions. It is what gets a person out of bed in the morning. It may be a calling, a passion, a drive, a commitment, a need, a yearning and much more.
The components of spirituality are elusive, but possible common denominators are:
• Life-long learning. In the course of a typical life span, formal education ends somewhere around the first third, which may create the false impression we are done learning. Worse, if we think we are done learning, we may become closed minded.
Remaining teachable can be a source of great joy and satisfaction. Information continues to grow exponentially and the depths of available knowledge - about technology, ancient to pop culture, human behavior, etc. - are inexhaustible.
• Service to others. Selfishness, ironically, boosts a sense of self. Much has been written about what separates selfishness from selflessness, greed from charity, egoism from compassion.
Although few of us may rise to the degree of altruism exemplified by Mother Teresa, for example, serving others may be as simple as sharing - in a kind, constructive manner - an experience or passing on a lesson learned.
Any discussion of the meaning of life invariably conjures thoughts about what we will leave behind. We may wonder: "How will people remember me? What will be my legacy?"
Such thoughts bring to mind a quote from Cardinal Francis George, who said: "When we die, the only thing we can take with us is what we have given away!"