Josh Plovanic's Writings and Thoughts

"That just makes us...innsignificant!" -Random College football player I explained my crazy philosophy to.       Good. That's the point. In the broad scheme of things, that's what we all are. A blip of space and time that occupies an infinitely small place in the great ocean of infinity and eternity. Insignificant might be a fitting word for our world or ourselves, and an overwhelmingly humbling thought to realize how small we really are, but even the smallest things still have value, and still can be loved.        For me, this humbling thought doesn't bring insecurity. I need to be humbled every once in awhile like we all do. The thought of how big existence is...and how small I and the world I'm in are...gives me great hope. A hope for limitless, endless exploration of a system so vast and so glorious that I would never lack in fulfillment or purpose, and never run out of things to do.         World upon world and culture upon culture is something that I hav

     Memento Mori, the meditation on the temporariness of life and the inevitability of death, was a practice encouraged by many philosophers and thinkers throughout history. Commonly attributed to the stoics, the practice, despite its name, was not intended to be morbid or depressing. It was intended to be humbling and give a sense of beauty and value to existence that otherwise would not be appreciated if you weren't aware of how fleeting it is.       "Death is the great leveler," as the old saying goes. It spares no one, rich or poor, powerful or powerless, beautiful or ugly, strong or weak. It can strike anyone and at any time without reason or explanation. This fact puts us all on the same playing field when it comes to the ultimate fate of all life.      The utility of reminding yourself of this comes in the fact that acknowledging that you are of the same fate as all others makes you appreciate your blessings more and empathize with those in more unfortunate positi