The Meaning of Life at 35: Faith, Fatherhood & Fighting the System with Kindness
At 35, I’ve stopped pretending I had life figured out. Instead, I began listening. Watching. Asking.
I began noticing not just the pain in the world — but how we’ve all learned to normalize it. I’ve walked streets in Lucena where the homeless are ignored. I’ve seen bright, talented people burn out, trapped in a system that forces us to survive instead of live. I used to think kindness alone could fix it. Now I know: it takes love, clarity, faith — and resistance.
Tolstoy, Jesus, and the Truth Hidden in Plain Sight
In his midlife, Leo Tolstoy had everything — fame, family, wealth. But he was haunted by a simple question: What is the meaning of life if it all ends in death?
Philosophy couldn’t answer it. Science couldn’t. Society, with all its distractions, only deepened the void.
Eventually, Tolstoy found truth not in organized religion, but in the radical simplicity of Jesus’ teachings — especially the Sermon on the Mount:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit… Turn the other cheek… Love your enemies… Do not store up treasures on earth… Do unto others as you would have them do unto you…”
Tolstoy saw that the meaning of life is not to gain, but to give. Not to rule, but to serve. Not to win, but to love in the midst of chaos.
The System We Inherited
Most of us are born into a system we didn’t choose — one that rewards competition over compassion, self-preservation over sacrifice. Even the most academically excellent are often trained to climb a ladder without questioning where it leads or who it leaves behind.
While I used to admire achievement, I now ask: Does it serve others? Or just the system?
The system is designed to make you forget you were once kind — until you had bills to pay. It turns full-time helpers into part-time givers. It praises productivity but forgets peace. It teaches survival, not purpose.
Fatherhood: A New Kind of Revolution
Raising my son taught me to look deeper. I’m not raising him just to succeed in this world — I’m teaching him how to live above it. I want him to compete with excellence without losing compassion, to be wise, not just smart. To be soft-hearted in a world that rewards the hardened.
Because if we raise our children just to fit into a broken system, we are not raising leaders — we’re raising survivors. And I want him to be a restorer, not a product of damage.
Kindness Is a Strategy
I’ve burned out trying to save the world. I’ve given my last coins, my last energy, my last breath to people who needed help — and I don’t regret it. But I’ve also learned that to keep helping, you have to help yourself first.
The system is chaotic — and it can swallow you whole if you're not careful.
That’s why I’ve learned to be smart and kind. To work hard — but not lose my heart. To care for myself — so I can continue to care for others. And most of all, to follow the teachings of Jesus: not just to believe in Him, but to live like Him. In the chaos. With compassion. With clarity.
The Meaning of Life at 35
- To stay soft, even when the world hardens you.
- To help others — not just with your heart, but with wisdom.
- To be kind to yourself so you can be a lifeline to others.
- To raise children who value kindness over status.
- To question a system that rewards competition but ignores compassion.
- To follow Jesus — not only with your faith, but with your hands and life.
This is how we fight the system. This is how we rise together. This is how we live with meaning.