There are two things firmly at the root of our earthly existence. These things are so fundamental that without them there would be no Humanity as we know it.
The first one of these is biology. Despite our having reached the stars and split the atom, and against our subconscious repulsion of the mere suggestion – we remain entirely and absolutely, animals. Granted, very advanced animals, with lots of specialized skills (knowledge and behavior which together we call culture), we even display behaviors that no other animal does, and so in our rationalization that makes us “non-animals”. Still, all rationalization and self-congratulatory arguments aside, we go on obeying the natural laws set out by our biology. The search for food and shelter, self-preservation, pair bonding, rearing the young, social group formation, and the assurance that our offspring will be able to do the same – all these are outward expressions of the implacable biological imperatives that drive our deepest needs.
The second pillar of the Human experience seems to spring from all that is furthest from our base instincts. Our emotional, intellectual, and spiritual lives seem to represent all that makes us “not animals”. And these features of Humanity are not to be too lightly dismissed – it is these qualities that have led us to pursue our curiosities about the world around us, to prize peace over war, to hold Love and Justice as the noblest of all aims. Without our emotional, intellectual, and spiritual lives Humanity would be just like the rest of the fauna on the planet – scampering after our next lunch, or away from being turned into lunch.
We love, we kill, we daydream, we make big discoveries, we help strangers, we orbit the globe, we save stray animals, plant trees, deforest continents, pave roads through wilderness’, climb mountains, make beautiful nonsense, and struggle against disease, act against injustice, act for personal gain . . . and all the while, if only we could be a little more comfortable with ourselves, our whole selves, not just the part of being human that we like to acknowledge, we might find beauty and peace in its whole, imperfect, balance.