“I praise, I do not reproach, [nihilism’s] arrival. I believe it is one of the greatest crises, a moment of the deepest self-reflection of humanity. Whether man recovers from it, whether he becomes master of this crisis, is a question of his strength.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

How are we to devote our time as characters in a setting? We, unlike characters in a play or film, cannot judge our presupposed audience. We hope it to exist outside this world in which we desperately seek meaning. Upon immediate glance, the reaction of pessimism and despair is only natural. Our entire existence has been spent clinging to Gods and metaphysical realities which attempt to offer us an explanation. The ones who have contemplated their existence depended heavily on a personal valuation of truth. The ones who have remained through history repeatedly teetered on the edge of sanity; coming to terms with the meaninglessness of life through struggle, gratitude, and perseverance. Some prevailed, some were persecuted, and all of them were romantically tragic. Dominating philosophies have been adopted through the public sphere and resulted in many unsound convictions. These self-proclaimed truths were able to propagate through the transferring of wills and our unrefined “animal” nature. A violinist, led by the maestro’s superior delusion, must decide what is beautiful and what is not. The legitimacy of our existence, as truly conscious, is founded in this freedom to an interpretation and the will to self-determination. Self-determination comes through reflection and wisdom. It requires discipline for the conscious-self to refrain from ignorance; eventually allowing us to appreciate what is truly beautiful and worth celebrating. We are all blessed with this ability, and it remains our responsibility to protect its innocence.