He was surprised and ran like hell. Just as the hungry wolf was about to catch up with him, he saw a well in front of him, an unknown well, and jumped in desperately. There is not only no water in the well, but also many poisonous snakes. When they saw the food delivered to the door, they held their heads high and stuck out their tongues, waiting for them eagerly.
Frightened, he reached for something that could save lives. Unexpectedly, he did what people wanted. He grabbed a small tree that stretched horizontally in the middle of the well and held him in mid-air.
At this time, there are hungry wolves and poisonous snakes in the world, but although he is in a dilemma, he is safe for the time being.
Just as he breathed a sigh of relief, a strange sound reached his ears. He looked in horror and found a group of big mice gnawing at the roots with sharp teeth. The help tree is used up. In this do or die, he saw a drop of honey on the leaves in front of him. So he forgot the hungry wolf above, the poisonous snake below, and the little tree that was about to be bitten by a mouse. He closed his eyes, stuck out his tongue and licked the drop of honey wholeheartedly. At this moment, for him, that drop of honey is the meaning of life
The Meaning of Life Story 21942 In September, Victor Frank, a famous Jewish psychiatrist and neurologist, was arrested by the Nazis with his wife and parents and taken to a concentration camp. Three years later, when he was rescued from the concentration camp, his pregnant wife and most of his family had died, but he survived as a prisoner of 1 19 104.
1946, he spent nine days writing down his experience in the concentration camp and publishing it. In this best-selling book named The Meaning of Life, he summed up the difference between life and death: that is the meaning of life. This is an epiphany of his early life. When he was in high school, a science teacher stood on the podium and said to them, "The process of life is like burning, just a process of constant oxidation." Frank immediately bounced off his chair and retorted, "Sir, if life is really like this, what is the meaning of life?"
During his detention, he found that even if he lived in the most appalling environment, once he found the meaning of life, his adaptability to life would be greatly improved. He wrote in the book "The Meaning of Life": "Here, everything from a person's most precious life to the most insignificant things can be easily taken away. Here, we only retain the last freedom in human nature, that is, to decide our attitude towards life and our way of life in any given environment. "
Frank worked as a doctor in a concentration camp. In the book, he mentioned two prisoners who tried to commit suicide in a concentration camp. These two people, like other people in the concentration camp, have long been disheartened and have nothing to be lovable. Frank wrote: "In both cases, I need to make them realize that they are still expected by some people and they still have a future worth waiting for. One of them is the father of a child. His children live abroad. The other is a scientist, and he still has a set of books to finish. "
Frank went on to write:
"Every individual distinguishes himself from others through his own uniqueness and uniqueness. It is these two characteristics that link the meaning of everyone's existence with creative work and human love. When a person realizes that he is irreplaceable, he will realize his responsibility in this world, and he will carry it forward. When a person realizes that he needs to bear the warmth from others, and when he realizes that he needs to finish his unfinished business, he will never give up his life. Because he already knows the meaning of his existence, he can calmly face any challenge ahead. "
199 1 year, the library of congress and the book club of the month listed the meaning of life as one of the ten most influential books in the United States. This book has been distributed in millions of copies all over the world. The essence of the book: the exploration of the meaning of life, the experience of the value of suffering, and the commitment to transcending self-responsibility, all seem to be incompatible with our current culture. We don't think about the meaning of life now, but are more willing to pursue individual happiness. Frank wrote in the book: "Unlike European culture, this is a feature of American culture: everyone is constantly urged to pursue happiness. However, happiness is hard to come by. Happiness will only come with something, and one must have a reason to be happy. "
Studies have proved that pursuing a meaningful lifestyle will comprehensively improve a person's happiness level and life satisfaction, promote physical and mental health, improve resilience, enhance self-esteem and reduce depression. Ironically, people who blindly pursue happiness feel unhappy. A recent study shows that, as Frank said, the excessive pursuit of happiness actually hinders the arrival of happiness.
This is why scholars oppose the blind pursuit of happiness. In Positive Psychology, there is a recent research report. Psychologists surveyed nearly 400 Americans between the ages of 18 and 78, asking whether their lives were meaningful (or happy). In the one-month survey, the researchers analyzed the respondents' evaluation of their own happiness and their views on the meaning of life, and combined with their stress level, consumption habits, children and many other variables, found that a meaningful life and a happy life have some similarities, but they are still different. Psychologists finally concluded: in a happy life, "get" more; In a meaningful life, "pay" is more.
The researchers wrote: "Those who do not pursue the meaning of life but only pursue happiness usually mean a relatively shallow, selfish and even selfish life. In this kind of life, a person's various desires and needs can always be easily met, and people always avoid difficulties and burdens. "
What's the difference between a happy life and a meaningful life? Researchers have found that a happy life usually means feeling good. Specifically, people who feel happy feel that life is very comfortable. They are healthy and can buy what they need. When you are short of money, you will feel that life is meaningless and your happiness will decline. Money has a great influence on their happiness. And a happy life can be defined as a life without pressure and troubles.
From the social point of view, people who blindly pursue happiness have a remarkable feature, that is, selfishness. As mentioned above, they just want to "get" but don't know "give". Psychologists give a further explanation: happiness is to satisfy desires. If you have desires or needs, for example, you feel hungry, and you eat food to satisfy your hunger, so you feel happy. People feel happy, in other words, their desires are satisfied. The researchers also pointed out that humans are not the only species that will feel happy. Animals also have desires and needs, and when their desires are satisfied, they will feel happy.
"People who only pursue happiness will become happy only if they benefit from others. But those who pursue the meaning of life will enjoy the happiness of giving to others. " Catherine Voss, one of the authors of this study, said in a public speech at the University of Pennsylvania. In other words, while those who blindly pursue happiness are scrambling to satisfy their endless desires, those who pursue the meaning of life have already surpassed themselves. Those who pursue a higher meaning in life are more willing to reach out and help those in need. The researchers wrote: "In short, the pure pursuit of happiness only means turning a blind eye to those who need help."
Therefore, the pursuit of happiness can't distinguish between people and animals, it's just a biological instinct. Roy Baumeister, a social psychologist at the University of Florida, who led the research, wrote in his new book The Power of Will: Rediscovering the Power of Human Beings that the uniqueness of human beings lies in their pursuit of meaning.
Participants in this study mentioned many experiences of giving themselves to help others and sacrificing themselves for collective interests to gain the meaning of life. In the words of Martin seligman, the top living psychologist, pursuing a meaningful life means "using all your strength and talents to serve and serve things beyond yourself." To give a few examples, buying gifts for others, taking care of children and giving advice are all ways to pursue a more meaningful life. Those who live a more meaningful life often take the initiative to pursue the meaning of life, even though they know it is at the expense of their own happiness. Because they devote themselves to something higher than themselves. They have more worries, higher stress index and more anxiety than those who feel happy. For example, raising children is a meaningful life experience, but it also means self-sacrifice. Many parents, including researchers, have a low happiness index. In fact, a study by Gilbert, a psychologist at Harvard University, shows that parents are more unhappy when interacting with their children than when exercising, eating and watching TV.
Baumeister told me in an interview: "To some extent, as human beings, we should care about and contribute to others. This will bring meaning to our lives, but it will not necessarily make us happy. "
The meaning of life not only transcends self, but also transcends time and space-according to the researchers, this is perhaps the most important discovery in this study. Happiness is just an emotion that exists at the moment, and it will eventually dissipate like other emotions. These positive effects and emotional pleasure are fleeting. People's reports on happiness are all related to time, but not all reports on the meaning of life.
At the same time, on the other hand, the meaning of life is enduring. It connects the past, the present and the future. The researchers wrote: "Thought will transcend the present and connect the past and the future. It is associated with a meaningful but unhappy life. It is difficult to find happiness in thinking about the past and the future. " In other words, people who pay attention to the present will live happier lives. Accordingly, those who think more about the past and the future will feel more pain, make more efforts and enjoy less happiness, but they live more meaningfully.
Studies have found that although suffering misfortune will reduce your happiness, it will make you feel the meaning of life. A study in 20xx years also proved this point. Those who have clear goals and pursue the meaning of life will set higher standards to meet life, even if they feel much more unfortunate than those who have no goals at present. Frank wrote in the book: "If life has meaning, then the pain experienced must also be meaningful."
Let's continue to review Frank's life, especially a decisive experience before he was sent to a concentration camp. This incident emphasizes how different a life that pursues meaning is from a life that pursues happiness.
Before he and his family were taken to the concentration camp, Frank was famous in the field of psychiatric research in Vienna and even in the world. For example, at the age of 16, he began to correspond with Freud, and with his extraordinary talent, he left a deep impression on Freud. Freud contributed to the International Journal of Psychiatry and wrote in his reply: "I hope you won't object."
When he was in medical school, Frank became even better. He not only established the Youth Suicide Prevention Center-this is the predecessor of his work in the concentration camp. He also developed a set of methods called existential psychoanalysis therapy, which made a unique contribution to the clinical medicine of psychiatry. This therapy can help people find the unique meaning of life, so as to overcome depression and get happiness. 194 1 year, his theory has aroused widespread concern in the world, and he has also become the chief doctor of neurology at Rothschild Hospital in Vienna. There, he risked his life and career to forge a diagnosis report for mental patients to help them escape the Nazi euthanasia massacre of mental patients.
In the same year, Frank made a decision, a decision that changed his life. His career in Ran Ran is booming, and the Nazis are eyeing him. He successfully applied for a visa to the United States at 194 1. At that time, the Nazis had begun to surround Jews and send them to concentration camps. At first, their target was Jewish old people. Frank knew it was only a matter of time before the Nazis took his parents away. He also knows that once his parents are taken away, he has the responsibility to accompany them into the concentration camp and help them treat their psychological trauma during the concentration camp. On the other hand, as a newly married man with a visa, he wants to escape to the safe United States and make achievements in his career.
Anna's biography of Frank describes the situation like this: Frank was upset and didn't know what to do, so he went to St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna to clear his mind. With the music of the organ, he kept asking himself, "Don't leave my parents like this? Should I say goodbye to them and leave them to their fate? " Where is his responsibility? He is looking for "the revelation of God".
When he came home, he found the revelation of God. As soon as he entered the door, he found a pinball on the table. His father told him that the stone came from the ruins of a nearby synagogue destroyed by the Nazis. There are fragments of the Ten Commandments on the marble-filial piety to parents. So Frank made a decision that no matter how safe the United States was and how beneficial it was to his career, he would stay in Vienna. He put aside his personal pursuit and served his family. After he entered the concentration camp, he served the imprisoned prisoners.
Frank learned a lot of wisdom from his early experience in a concentration camp and inhuman torture: "When human beings are alive, they will always move in a certain direction. This direction may point to someone or something, but a person's actions are more for others than for himself. Maybe to pursue a certain meaning, maybe to meet someone. The more selfless a person is-burning himself for the people he loves and the things he loves-the more he becomes a real person. "
Baumeister and his colleagues all agree with this view. People are born to be human, and their unique life is to pursue the meaning of life. Put aside selfish interests and serve people or things beyond yourself. Pay more and take less. We are not only showing the most basic human nature, we should also admit that the pursuit of happiness is not the whole meaning of life.
The Meaning of Life Story 3 When Liz Murray was 8 years old, his mother died of AIDS and his father went to a shelter. In order to change her fate, she completed the course in two years and was admitted to Harvard University.
Liz Murray started begging at the age of eight. 15 years old, my mother died of AIDS and my father went to a shelter. Murray has been sleeping on the street ever since. In order to change her fate, she completed the four-year course in two years, won the "new york Times First Scholarship" and was admitted to Harvard with excellent results. Today, she gives speeches all over the world, inspiring people to overcome difficulties and pursue their dreams.
Suffering family
Seven days a week, I can hear the noise of the car in front of our apartment almost every day. Parents go in and out almost all night, endlessly. Their dependence on addictive drugs is becoming more and more serious.
In the first six or seven days of each month, parents will spend all the benefits, leaving nothing. When there is no money, my mother will go to the sink bar or McGovern bar and ask all kinds of old people for a few dollars.
It costs at least 5 yuan to buy a little addictive drugs. Every time I come back from the bar, my mother reports to my father cheaply: "Pete, I have 5 yuan." At this time, they will quietly put on their clothes and sneak out in case their sleeping sister Lisa finds out.
Father knows that when we are hungry, if Lisa finds out that he has bought addictive drugs, it will lead to endless curses, insults, tears and quarrels. Lisa's anger is not wrong.
But I'm not as firm as Lisa about my parents' drug abuse. Mother said that she needed addictive drugs to anesthetize herself to forget the tragic experiences of her childhood, which often haunted her mind. Although I'm not sure whether my father took drugs to forget his past misfortunes, I know. If father doesn't take drugs, he will be in great pain, … lying on the sofa in pain for several days. At that time, I hardly recognized him as my father.
Lisa's requirements for her parents are simple. All she wants is a good meal. At this point, Lisa and I are the same.
But I noticed that if we have no food for one day, our parents may have no food for two or three days. Parents always tell us in one way or another-there is nothing they can do.
They won't hurt us on purpose. My parents can't give me what I expect, but how can I blame them?
I remember once on my birthday, my mother stole 5 yuan from me, which was mailed to me by my grandmother from Long Island. I put my money in the dresser drawer, going to the grocery store to buy some sweets, but suddenly I asked about the plan and it fell through. When my mother saw where I put my money, she took it away to buy addictive drugs as soon as she left.
Half an hour later, my mother went home with a small bag of things. I was angry when I saw her. I asked her to give me my money back and said some extremely harsh words loudly. Mom didn't say anything and turned away. I followed her to continue cursing. I think she must want to avoid me and enjoy her addictive drugs in private, but I was wrong. I saw my mother throw the small bag into the toilet and cry loudly there. I just found out that she bought the one she threw into the toilet.
She looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, "Liz, I'm not a monster. I can't help it I can't stop. Will you forgive me? "
I also cried loudly. We sat on the bathroom floor, hugging and crying. Her syringe is on the toilet tank. I found that my mother's arm was covered with traces left by needles. My mother kept asking me the same question in a low voice: "Liz, will you forgive me?"
I forgave her. She didn't want to do that herself, and if she could control it, she wouldn't do it.
roam about
At my friend Bobby's house, I heard a whisper by the fire at dinner. Bobby and his mother whispered about whether there was enough food for me that night. In the corridor outside Jamie's house, I heard her arguing, fighting and making noise with her mother just to let me stay one more night. The Fife family has also become very complicated. He's gone. Go see his cousin. His father opened the door and told me that he didn't know when Fife would come back. They are my friends, and what am I? "I need a place to live. Can you give me a plate of food? Do you have a blanket? May I use the shower? Do you have extra ... "I am like this, I can't stand it.
I don't want to do this anymore. It's really terrible, because my friends and their families have helped me a lot. I can't help but wonder: When will they stop helping me? Where did I go too far? Since when have they turned me down? I can't do this forever! And I thought that one day, I might hear my friends directly refuse my request for food and shelter. They especially hate my self-abandonment. I really don't know what to do when I think about it.
I am afraid that the moment of rejection I imagined will come soon. How does it feel if the person you love rejects you? I don't want to know. I decided not to be so greedy anymore.
life
Manager Shen asked us to work in blocks. Which block we are assigned to depends on his evaluation of our lobbying level. Those unskilled lobbyists are assigned to "dry" areas, where dilapidated houses are everywhere, while those skilled lobbyists can go to rich areas.
I was in charge of the "dry" area that day, and obviously my income would be very low. The limit is 120 a day. When the truck picked me up at 9: 30 that night, to the surprise of Manager Shen, I actually earned 240 yuan! After that day, I was assigned to a bathing community, and my income kept increasing, often reaching several hundred dollars a night. The reason for my success is simple-not only I often go hungry, but also I have no summer vacation. My goal is to save every dollar. When I enter school and have to go out to work, I can spend that long day.
For the first time, I found a bigger goal for my life: to get out of the slums, where I was born. I still have an unattainable wish, which is related to the brand-new environment and busyness I experienced in those rich areas-cars parked in endless gravel lanes, children riding bicycles in shaded streets ... When I held up my clipboard and carried my schoolbag full, I secretly experienced their lives, and I relished the unscrupulous caress of the cold air conditioning running out of their hut. What is exciting is that the people's lives I see here are completely different from the patterns I am familiar with. I am eager to have such a life, which deeply inspires me.
Choose hope
I know that the interview questions must be related to my application, and they asked me to describe the difficulties I overcame. Because I have reached the age of 18, and I am no longer supervised by child welfare institutions. When I applied to The New York Times, I wrote without reservation that I was homeless.
During the interview, I said more things that were not written in the application. I told writers, editors and people in suits and suits my parents, told them that my mother sells Thanksgiving turkeys, told them that I live on the relief of my friends and sleep in the stairwell, told them that sometimes I get hungry ... The room became quiet, and a man with a red tie and glasses leaned over to break the silence.
"Liz, do you have anything else to tell us?" He asked.
I froze. Obviously, I should say something impressive, thoughtful and profound to make them feel that I deserve this scholarship.
"Well, I need a scholarship. I really need it. " This is my first thought. Hearing this, everyone laughed. If I can think of something that sounds more complicated and impressive, I will definitely say it, but it is the only thing in my mind, my truth.
change one's lifestyle
In the busy crowd, I watched the postman getting closer and closer to me. I know that his package may contain the letter I expected. After months of anxiety and worry, I was almost waiting for the answer, and it was right in front of me. However, I didn't feel the kind of depression I thought I would feel. The fact is simple: I have written everything in the letter and I can't change anything. At that time, I realized that I had done everything I should.
God gave me the serenity to accept the unchangeable: the courage to change the things I can; Give me wisdom and let me discover the difference of things. ...
After all this, I finally focused on several aspects of my life that can be changed. I have to admit that there are still some things I can't do.
I can't save Samantha from her family, but I can be her friend; I can't change Carlos, but I can keep that friendship and make myself better; I can't cure my family, although I want to, but I can forgive them and love them.
I can also choose to try to create a life for myself, which will never be bound by my past.
Watching the postman get closer and closer, I realized that this letter, this letter from Harvard, no matter what was written in it, would not break my present life. Moreover, I gradually understand that no matter what happens now or in the future, my life will never be influenced by external conditions. As always, my efforts will determine my life to move forward step by step.
I am very sure of one thing: whether it is a homeless tramp or a businessman, a doctor or a teacher, no matter what background, life is meaningful only if we give it meaning.
The Meaning of Life Story 4: At the seaside, a turtle saw Miss Yuzhu coming by boat and cried nervously, mussel, run for your life! It's too late to escape!
The mussel looked up and said, tortoise, you are really making a fuss. Where is the danger?
Sea mussels, you really don't understand kindness. Miss Yu Zhu is coming soon. Don't you know the danger is coming?
There's nothing to be afraid of. Come when you come! Mytilus said slowly.
The tortoise was not afraid to see the mussel at all, and continued to ask, Do you know what Miss Yuzhu is doing here?
Yes, she wants to implant beads into my body so that I can reproduce them. Replied the mussel.
But when you secrete nacre and cultivate it into pearls, they will cut you open and take the pearls out! The tortoise said anxiously.
This is my success! For me, as long as I can cultivate dazzling, round and exquisite pearls, I have no regrets even if I lose my life.
Hearing this, the tortoise shrank its head and crawled away shyly.
Enlightenment can create value for society and others, and life is the most meaningful.
The Meaning of Life Story Five people came to this world, and from birth to death, they have gone through or completed the whole life process. This is what people often say about life. A person, regardless of the nation-state, regardless of men and women, regardless of the length of life, regardless of the position, regardless of the occupation, will spend this process in this way.
Some people say that life itself is meaningless, but there are not many people in the vast world without you. When life is given to people, it is destined to be meaningful. In order to survive, to live well and live well, people naturally have an endless pursuit of life, and this pursuit is full of the meaning of life. But life only belongs to people once. If we can use it correctly, let it shine in the struggle and present the truth in the ordinary, then once is enough. However, many people, in the dance academy, trample on life and are not good at spending it once. Just like: fish live in water and die in water; Plants are born in soil and die in soil; Born in Tao, died in Tao.
Different people have different meanings to life. Only those who know the true meaning of life can prolong their short lives and make them meaningful. So, what is the true meaning of life? In my opinion, the true meaning of life is to get along with the world, keep pace with the times, and enjoy it.
Some people regard their life as a candle, and in order to burn themselves and illuminate other people's lives, they often give people light, and people thank him; Some people regard their life as a cow, thanking him for eating more grass and plowing more land, milking more people and creating more fruitful fruits. Some people regard their life as a book. They have worked hard all their lives, accumulated knowledge, suffered a lot and drained their hard work, just to give others nutrition and wisdom, so that others can live a relaxed and happy life and enjoy it. Its function is not only to educate modern people, but also to educate and influence future generations, to embrace a correct life, and human beings will remember him.
There is another kind of people who bind their life and power together and regard their whole life as money. In order to possess power and wealth, they will do whatever it takes to argue about their lives, enrich themselves and benefit others, regardless of their own lives, and often bring confusion, pain, disaster, regret and hatred to others. Such people are very harmful to themselves and others. They are not only shortening their own lives, but also hurting and trampling on others' lives.
Looking at real life, some officials can't perform their official duties fairly and take all kinds of improper means to extort money. As a result, as soon as they caught the money, they dug their own graves, buried their political lives under their feet, buried a worthless young life, and became people who were not ashamed of mankind. Some unscrupulous people, regardless of their lives for money, went to the abyss of evil, even defiled their glorious lives, and even stained the guillotine with blood ... These people not only lost their power and money, but also lost their dignity as human beings, making their souls cry, and eventually became notorious for thousands of years. What is the significance of all this to the survival of life?
In fact, the real meaning of life is to live a full life, live a self and live a stable life. Ostrovsky, a famous Russian writer, said: "A man's life should be spent like this: when he recalls the past, he will not regret because he wasted his time, nor will he be ashamed because he did nothing in the past;" In this way, when he dies, he can say: All my life and energy have been dedicated to the most magnificent cause in the world-the struggle for the liberation of mankind. Although what he said is the significance of giving human life to devote to the cause of human liberation, it also has important guiding significance for our contemporary people, that is, human life cannot be wasted.
Life is dominated by oneself, and those who can't dominate themselves will always be slaves and even collapse to the end of their lives. Life, if it can be associated with the lofty responsibility of the times, will feel its infinite glory and immortality. Life is a dangerous narrow valley, only brave and upright people can cross it. A great soul, in a difficult canyon, will strengthen its own thoughts and life motivation.
As a person, since there is no choice to go to the world, we should cherish the value of life. To cherish life, we should cherish today, look forward to tomorrow, let life spark in generate and repay the society.
Life is too short to haggle. Only those who love life are lucky and happy.