Coffee, breakfast, and a healthy does of existential crisis

Posted on Wed Jul 27th, 2022 @ 8:49pm by Lieutenant JG Damien Blackford

Mission: MISSION 0 - History Speaks
Location: Deck 12 - Cabin 29 E-O
643 words - 1.3 OF Standard Post Measure

Damien sighed as he headed into his bedroom with a glass of water. Placing it down on the desk, he dropped into the seat, running a hand through his hair, staring out his cabin window at the stars flying by them. Sighing again, he turned to the small screen on the desk. Reaching across, he turned the screen on, smiling at the picture of him and Vira that filled the screen.

"Computer, begin recording." There was a soft beep as Damien stared at the screen in front of him, glancing back out the window again.

"'Space. The Final Frontier...' These are the words that James Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard launched their missions with. When they first started, they didn't know what they were going to find. To humanity, the galaxy was brand new. We were like children, taking their first steps into the light. The Vulcans were our... well, not exactly parents, but close enough. We were scared. We didn't know what to expect. The Vulcans were the first Alien species we had met. So many people had truly believed that we were alone in the world. That life didn't exist on other planets. These days it seems silly to think that. How could it possibly be that in a universe as large as ours, we could be the only Planet with life? But hundreds of years ago, it seemed impossible."

Damien bit his lip, reaching across the desk to pick up his water, sipping slowly as he continued staring out the window, fingers drumming against the side of the glass.

"It's strange to think about how being born at a certain time drastically changes your worldview." He chuckled softly, before continuing. "Okay. That sounds really obvious. But what I mean is, had I been born a few hundred years ago, my life today would seem like the stuff of fantasy novels. Ships that travel the stars, instead of the ocean? Madness. And yet, in this day and age, no one bats an eyelid at it. My roommate at the Academy was a Bolian and my best friend was a Trill. And my girlfriend? She looks human but is from a completely different planet. It just seems so implausible to me that anyone could ever entertain the notion that we are alone in this universe."

"And yet, sometimes it feels that way anyway. I mean, the universe is infinite. We don't know how much is out there, or how many more species we're going to encounter. I could spend the remainder of my life exploring the Universe, and all of her mysteries, and still only discover a tiny percentage of it. And is it even possible to discover all of it? New systems are being created and destroyed every day. They used to say that 106 people died every minute. And that was only on Earth. A tiny rock floating in Space. Can you imagine how big that number would be if you take into account all of the planets we now know exist? It doesn't even bear thinking about."

"Life is precious. I know, I know. Again, seems obvious. But after having been out here, seeing what I've seen. I've come to realise that, you can't take anything for granted. You can't sit around, waiting for something to happen. Tomorrow isn't guaranteed. 'Yesterday was the past. Tomorrow is the future. Today is a gift, that's why it's called the present.' Cheesy, I know, but it's true. You don't know what's gonna happen tomorrow. So instead of sitting around, waiting for it to come to you, get up, and go get it. Because at the end of your life, you'll always regret the things you didn't do. Life is a gift. Don't squander it."

Damien smiled, nodding to himself, as he stood up again.

"Computer, end recording and save."

 

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