Humanity

Simple, but effective.

Sometimes I feel like humans are the least understood animals on this planet. People either see themselves as some sort of magical spirits above the laws and instincts that bind all living beings, or some sort of hideously destructive mistake on nature's part. While on many levels both of these ways of seeing might seem to be true, in my opinion there is much more to it.

Human beings, in the end, are really just animals. Sentient, creative and unmistakably one of the among the most successful single species in Earth's long history, yes, but still bound by the same laws and directives that give purpose to fish and insects. Does this mean that our lives somehow lack any value whatsoever? Of course not, but to truly attempt to understand humanity objectively, the first thing to understand is that we are just a small part of a much grander story.

That's were people start to get confused. Most understand that there are far greater forces than just us. But what part do we play? How can a small primate just now peeking out of the jungles of deepest darkest Africa be anything special?

As mentioned earlier, humans evolved into their present form via natural selection; An often slow, grinding an many times chaotic process that leads to more losers than winners. That's where the beauty lays. It's tragic, that we're here today while most other species are left to the rocks of the fossil record. Why us then? What makes us survivors in the constant struggle of nature?

It could be as simple as the cold practical physical adaptations we have slowly accumulate over time. From the smallest and most delicate muscles in our hands, to the vast superhighway of our brains, we are beautifully well designed for what we do. We are at root generalist, migratory creatures; obviously successful as we occur on every continent except Antarctica. If a wolf or a dolphin is beautiful doing what comes naturally to them, why shouldn't humans have that same appreciation on that level?

I don't feel like there's any reason we shouldn't.

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