The exceptions disprove the rule

God is funny.

The other day I was walking up Yonge Street when I was stopped by a person that was soliciting donations for Save The Children. Usually I just blow these people off - if I want to donate money to a charity, I'll do it on my own time. And I was in a rush at the time.

But I had to stop. This person was not just a person. This was one amazing specimen of female human being. Her face was just imperfectly symmetrical enough to trick the human brain into thinking that it was, in fact, perfect. Her eyes were big, wide, and green - with a hint of glitter makeup around to accentuate them. Her nose was small, pointed and perky. And then when she spoke her voice was at that perfect register that makes the words ring. I felt like asking the stupid question, "Did it hurt?" because I genuinely felt like this is what it must be like to be in the presence of an angel. I didn't. Wouldn't have hurt to have tried.

She introduced herself as Amy, I introduced myself as Jonathan and we talked for 15 minute, she went for the sale close, and I had to blow her off at that point. I really had no intention of donating to Save the Children at that time.

This got me to thinking about all those people (like myself) who are not blessed with the good looks of Amy. Instead, God armed us with brains and the ability to adapt - which seems like a shitty trade-off because that means you actually have to put in effort to get anywhere in the world. He also gave us the ability to concoct meaningless platitudes to make us feel better about ourselves ("Nothing worth having is free." Load of crap.)

Those that just get by, become the part of the normal everyday mass of humanity, walking up at 7:30 AM, taking a shower, brushing their teeth, getting dressed, and getting into work by 9 AM. Live their life. And then die - another blip in the continuum of human history that forever plods forwards.

But even those blessed with some natural advantage get swallowed by the grind of life moving constantly forward.

And for some reason, this makes all of us feel like meaningless useless lumps of carbon destined to be forever forgotten in the world. And for some reason, this never sits right with people.

Because we are all unique little snowflakes destined to do something great! *scoff*

So we search for greater meaning in life. We strive to do something that will make people remember us. Whether that means we become famous or infamous, for a lot of people it really doesn't matter. The focus of religious and spiritual experience is always being a part of something greater - subsuming ourselves to the will of God or enlightening ourselves from the circle of reincarnation to Nirvana.

And God equips us with the tools to go on this search. For some - like Amy - he grants stunning good looks. For others, he grants amazing intellectual ability. For some, he gives them the ability to work with their hands and put things together. For others, he gives the lucky bastards a melange of skills.

It becomes up to us to be the exception that disproves the rule of mediocrity.