Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

Obsession, Part III
(See Part I here and Part II here)

On Stephenie Meyer’s website, she has posted the first chapter of Midnight Sun, a book she is working on that tells the Twilight story from Edward’s point of view (according to the web site, she intends to publish this after Breaking Dawn; this potential book, more than any other, makes me dizzy with anticipation).

In the excerpt, one idea snagged itself into my mind: Edward complaining how bored he was pretending to be a high school student for the umpteenth time.

This got me to thinking.

If you’re immortal, looking perpetually seventeen is a problem. You can go through high school and college only so many times before you wish you could shoot yourself. And don’t even hope for a career. A job, maybe, but you wouldn’t be able to keep it for long before people started to ask questions.

I began to wonder what I would do if I were immortal. Would I keep my job? I don’t think so. I can’t imagine it being fulfilling for all eternity. But what would I do? Is there anything that would stimulate me intellectually while sustaining my spirit for as long as I could conceive of time? What would I do to keep me going, and to keep me from going insane? Here, I envied Carlisle, the vampire doctor. He has just such a purpose in life that sustains him in the most important way. It seems like too much of a cliché, but on the other hand, I can’t imagine spending eternity worrying about my petty little selfish daily-grind issues.

(But look what I’ve done—I’ve just distilled a ridiculous musing about vampires into the age-old existential dilemma: What’s the point, anyway?)

After some thought, I came to the conclusion that if I were truly faced with the idea of forever stretching out in front of me, I would have to find something to do that was not only meaningful to me personally, but would make the world better too. I was surprised at the simplicity of this thought—was this the answer all along?

And then I had my epiphany.

Rather than living our lives, as the cliché suggests, as if each day were our last, we should be living our lives as if we were immortal.

If we were faced with everlasting life, I think we would quickly learn to separate the petty, inconsequential things from the important things. We would strive daily for the most satisfying and fulfilling lives on a deeper level, in order to combat the spiritual abyss of a meaningless eternity.

Daily decisions become easier. Don’t like your job? It’s never too late to change careers—you have all eternity to figure it out. Not in a fulfilling relationship? You have plenty of time to find a better partner, or work on the one you have. Put on a little weight? Well, think about it for a second. Do you really want to be a tad pudgy for all eternity? Always wanted to take up painting, or scuba diving, or beekeeping? Why not? You’ve got forever to learn.

Big decisions also become easier. You simply would stop caring about the majority of short-terms issues, and long-term goals and accomplishments begin to carry more weight. How your actions affect the people around you and the world at large gain more consideration.

I’m not saying that I’m suddenly going to quit my job, lose ten pounds, learn how to sail, and move to Africa to combat poverty. I’m just saying that maybe we should pay a little more mind to the big things that are important to us. Don’t be afraid of change; it’s never too late to do something meaningful. A little bit of immortality in our everyday lives wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer