YOLO
A motto for mundane conduct.
Often uttered and yelled immediately before doing something risky or self-destructive, as though these are the sorts of experiences that define a live worth living.
‘You only live once’ is meant to infer that this journey is singular and fleeting, and as such, we ought to dedicate our lives to pursuing the most meaningful experiences that permit us to justify our existence to ourselves. This wisdom is at least two thousand years old, however like many things, it became a pop cultural product when a rapper turned it into an anachronistic novelty. As a result, it is most frequently used as a justification for fleeting and mindless conduct, like spending money on things we do not need, following trends, or consuming far more food or alcohol than would be wise on a given day. Something has clearly been lost in translation.
What was once an invitation to disperse existential dread and regret has been replaced with whatever reduces our anxiety or makes us feel good. These are not comparable modalities.
Instead of welcoming the difficult challenges that define a life worth living, we seek to remove difficulties, because why should anyone need to do hard things when easy alternatives exist? Instead of conquering our fears, we have fallen victim to the mistaken belief that the world can be made free of threats, and we characterize everything as harmful to justify its elimination. Instead of overcoming odds, we seek to flatten all curves while we pretend that we accomplished something meaningful after we are handed it. Instead of pursuing greatness, we settle for compulsive inadequacies. Instead of making noteworthy accomplishments, we catalogue our benign activities in the hopes that their totality will count for something in the end. And instead of leaving a lasting impression of warmth and inspiration in the world, we compete with one another in a race to the bottom of human ingratitude and guilt.
Those who live their lives to the fullest because they genuinely believe ‘you only live once’ are busy pursuing greatness, whatever this looks like. They seek to be consequential.
Those who claim ‘you only live once’ to justify their maladaptive proclivities have given up on life, and are encouraging others to do the same. They revel in their inconsequential existence.
“We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that the Devil will tremble to take us.” - Charles Bukowski
Do you give the devil pause? Or do you welcome his hand?
See: HUBRIS
Posted: 17 Mar 2023
