« So has the experience affected your philosophy of life? » he said. « That’s not the right way to put it. What I mean is, has it changed what you believe in? »
He didn’t say any of this in an ironic tone. He wanted to know.
« I think I just believe more intensely in the things I believed in the first place. »
« For example? »
« That there is no God, and that the universe doesn’t give a flying fuck about us. That’s probably it. »
« And does that imply a code of behavior? The universe doesn’t give a flying fuck about us, and therefore…? »
Ralph was a friend who asked the second question. She thought that this might be one of the definitions of true friendship. If you have a friend who pays enough attention to you to ask the right question, you’re lucky; if you have a friend who listens to the answer, thinks some more, and asks the second question, then you’re blessed.
« There is no therefore that I can find. No universal therefore. I still believe the same things I always believed, but it’s a choice. Life doesn’t care about us, everyone gets pulverized sooner or later, and therefore we should take care of each other. But I believe that because I choose to believe that. If it’s a therefore, it’s just a personal therefore. »
From Breakable You, by Brian Morton.
