I will try to answer the question what is a life, well spent in a philosophical point of view.
Story of happiness:
I knew a boy who lived in our village, he was a cheerful boy. He wasn't a genius, average in everything. The quality I liked about him most is his manner with other people. I never saw him unhappy. Always smile on his lips. Have you known someone like that? I always wonder where their happiness comes from. Maybe there is a fountain of happiness inside their brains which always overflow them with Joy.
As he spent his ever-happy life, with his friends and family he was just around 17 or 18 years old when he started to drive a van. People used to hire his van for picnics. So, they can go around the country visiting places and he is being a cheerful boy this was a great life for him as well.
As it happened one day, he went out with a group on one such trip. And we heard the story that the group went on swimming in a river. Few of them got caught in fast current and were washed away. The boy, he jumped into the water to save them, and I am not sure what happened, yet he drowned in the process of trying to save others. He died a teenager.
Now, I have outlived his life (he was only one or two years younger than me). Yet, I cannot think about the cheerful short life that he had. Why are such beautiful souls taken away?
This also brings back the question. What is a life well spent? Was his life well spent?
Of course, we have to think about how spend our lives as the life is limited as we see. It is limited by death, inevitable for all of us. Any vacation would end one day. What is the answer?
One way to think about it is we have to achieve valuable things in life. Materialistic or memories which gives us a certain form of accomplishment. We can aim for higher or lower at variable risk.
What is a life well spent? - Minimalist, Achiever, Seeker.
Minimalist
We can spend a minimalist's life settling for smaller things and aiming low. We have less chance of failure if we do not try.
Example: someone would settle for a life with minimal pay and spend it on eating and drinking, just enjoying few things.
An Achiever
We can aim for higher at risk of failure, and if we are successful, we will be more happy, more accomplished.
Example: someone would not settle for life but will raise a family, to keep the legend of him go beyond the life, build a company, write a novel or a book to feel accomplished.
Most of us are limited to these two variations of each materialistic/ mental accomplishment views about life. The core idea behind both of those views is that our life is inherently valuable and have a meaning, at death we are going to lose it.
A Seeker
And also, there is another school of thoughts. What if our lives are not inherently valuable? If so, at death we would lose nothing, gain nothing. What would be such a life would be like? The life would be to understand the null value of life rather than chase the values of life.
Some philosophers identify these two ideologies, former as western, and later as eastern patterns of thinking.
What would you choose for your life to spent with?
Atoms and dust - Poem
I was walking on the sidewalk,
And stepped on leaves and dirt.
Stopped for a while to harvest some sunlight,
When mind continued the walk
Those dirt and leaves which I stepped on,
I hear them scream in silence.
They carry the atoms and molecules of my bloodline.
Just a few hundred years into the past.
Can't wait to be a leaf, can't wait to be some dust.
I will stick in the boots of my future children.
Mixed with your atoms and dust.
In summary
You can either be a minimalist and be happy, or chase success with risk of failure.
Less known third option is to chase the meaning of life, in search of 'Truth.'
Thank you for reading: What is a life well spent? Minimalist, Achiever, Seeker
You may also like to read where do our values come from
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