You are already a success story.

Standing out in the middle of the Mohave Desert in the silence, far removed from everything, one can feel sometimes small. More than that, however, one can feel the immensity of one’s own existence. I realized past all the billions of years it took for life to reach this far, after all the other dominant creatures which came before us, after all the civilizations which came and went, of all the other people or creatures which could have stood up and looked at the same beautiful sky, we were here instead.

Despite what our human world defines as success and mobility, the universe still remains vastly cruel and indifferent, wholly antithetical to life on our small planet. Sure, we get caught up in the flurry and bluster of modern life, but take the time to drink in a long silent moment in the present out somewhere in the open and realize you are already a success. Against all odds, you are here in the present in an indifferent universe where entire star systems get ripped apart into atoms or compressed into a point smaller than the period on this screen. So, do not feel like a failure, because you do not have Zuckerberg’s billions, McKellen’s charisma, or Cyrus’ beauty. You are already successful. You exist and by extension add just a little more awareness to the Cosmos. That is quite an achievement, and no one can take that away from you and call you a failure, except you.