The Meaning of Life implications for Pediatrics

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The Meaning of Life - implications for
Pediatrics
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What then, is the Purpose of Life?
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The Purpose of Life

• Does it exist? Does life have a purpose?
• Would knowing what it is make any difference?

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Have we heard people say

• Everybody has their own purpose.
• You do your thing, and I do mine
• Nothing is really true.
• You have your truth, and I have mine
• There no sense to it all!

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The metaphorical nature of physical reality

• This world is a classroom for our education
• Physical reality is a metaphor for spiritual
  reality
• Physical laws have their corollary in spiritual
  laws

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The Purpose of life - for a fetus

• To form organs
• To acquire basic abilities
• To grow in size and strength
• In sum
• To prepare for birth into their next life -
  this life

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The Purpose of life - for a Infant

• To form relations and human bonds
• To acquire a sense of self
• To acquires a deep sense of trust
• To grow in size and strength
• In sum
• To prepare for transition to their next stage -
  childhood

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The Purpose of life - for a Child

• To experience family
• To acquire a sense of self
• To learn and to love learning
• To cooperate and share
• To read, tell stories and to play
• In sum
• To prepare for the next stage - adolescence

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The Purpose of life - for an Adolescent

• Wider friendships and loyalties
• Social skills
• Abstract thinking and insight
• Skill, speed and strength
• Intelligence, creativity
• In sum
• To prepare for the next stage - adulthood

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The Purpose of life - for an Adult

• Is .
• In sum
• To prepare for

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Some Purposes of Life

• To care for others
• To encourage others
• To have true friends
• To be a true friend
• To promote justice
• To promote an ever advancing civilization
• To promote Unity

• To be more human
• - more kind loving
• To develop virtues
• To develop our abilities
• To be creative
• To be our spiritual best

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PoL from the Bahai writings -

• 6. to exploit this life's unique opportunities
  for spiritual testing.
• 7. to lay the foundation of true love
  friendship in the next life.
• 8. to be of service and spiritual guidance to
  others.
• 9. to promote the oneness of mankind.
• 10. to carry forward an ever-advancing
  civilization.

• 1. to develop one's soul in preparation for the
  next life.
• 2. to acquire virtues.
• 3. to know worship God.
• 4. to attain the Presence of God.
• 5. to attain the mystical state of self-surrender.

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Purpose of Life- from the Bahai writings -

• 6.
• 7.
• 8.
• 9.
• 10. to carry forward an ever-advancing
  civilization.

• 1. to develop one's soul in preparation for the
  next life - as a baby in its mother's womb
  develops bodily in preparation for life in this
  world.
• 2.
• 3.
• 4.
• 5.

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Beauty is inherent in the rose
Its beauty is intrinsic
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Bullying Child-gtchild aggression

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BULLYING
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A frequent refrain is Bullying has always been
with us
But is it normal?
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• Indeed, so much have aggression and conflict
  come to characterize our social, economic and
  religious systems, that many have succumbed to
  the view that such behavior is intrinsic to human
  nature and therefore ineradicable . . .
• Universal House of Justice,
• The Promise of World Peace
• To the Peoples of the World, p 15

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• . . . Dispassionately examined, the evidence
  reveals that such conduct, far from expressing
  mans true self, represents a distortion of the
  human spirit. Satisfaction on this point will
  enable all people to set in motion constructive
  social forces which, because they are consistent
  with human nature, will encourage harmony and
  co-operation instead of war and conflict.
• Universal House of Justice,
• The Promise of World Peace To the Peoples of the
  World, p 15

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These are two mutually exclusive behaviors -
one cannot do both at the same time in a
relationship. - we must choose.
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Each leads to a different outcome
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Competition

• History of competition
• Sports were intended to give fresh air and
  exercise
• Schools encouraged sports and with it competition
• Now media hypes competition as a goal in
  itself
• has now invaded drama, music, academics and
  virtually all youthful endeavors
• Yet, it is destructive of healthy relations
• It is not an benefit to our youth as
• it inhibits the development of empathy and
  friendship

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Competition ? Excellence

• Competition does not lead to excellence
• Striving leads to excellence

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Competition ? Excellence

• Competition
• - is a measure of yourself-against-another at one
  point in time
• Striving for excellence
• - is a measure of yourself-against-yourself at
  two points in time.

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Underlying pathology

• Competition ?
• critical
• exclusive
• asymmetry
• extrinsic value

• Cooperation
• nurturing
• inclusive
• symmetry
• intrinsic value

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Competition

• And amongst the realms of unity is the unity of
  rank and station. . . . Ever since the seeking of
  preference and distinction came into play, the
  world hath been laid waste. It hath become
  desolate. Those who have quaffed from the ocean
  of divine utterance and fixed their gaze upon the
  Realm of Glory should regard themselves as being
  on the same level as the others and in the same
  station.

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Competition
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Competition
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Protection from being a Victim

• A child needs Resilience, which comes from
• 1) Nurturing received in their early years
• Deep sense of trust,
• 2) An enduring basis of self-worth
• who am I? Answer ..
• Giving a sense of both humility and confidence
• and
• 3) A good sense of humor
• One should neither give offense, nor take
  offense

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Intervention for a Victim

• Protection
• - justice
• Enhancement of self-worth
• - intrinsic value
• Social skills to deflect bullies
• - consultation, cooperation

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Therapy for child Bullies

• Creation of
• empathy
• insight
• compassion
• a positive value system
• Logical Consequences
• Inclusive behavior

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Intervention
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Being different -
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is OK
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Because, in the end, were all just nuts
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Love, Power Justice Dr William Hatcher
Drops from the Ocean Henry A. Weiland,
The Bahai Writings
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Contact points

• Email psquires_at_mac.com
• To download this powerpoint presentation, go to
• homepage.mac.com/psquires

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Two Fundamental Principles

• Love Justice are the foundations of society
• Theres only us here on earth,
• - theres no them

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Memories of 70-73

• Downtown Free-clinic
• Indian-reserve health clinic
• Partyhouse on Chippewa
• Rhinorrhea med show
• Guinea-pig class
• Kens car burning
• Ruths dog eating her dashboard
• Opening med school with our grad

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Memories of 70-73

• Refused Lilly doctors bag
• Refused to rate profs for award
• Worked cooperatively
• Opening med school with our grad

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Other talks

• A scientific proof of the existence of God
• Evolution creation

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Relativity