What If The Mayans Are Right?

We’ve all heard the predictions; the Mayan calendar ends at 2012. Some speculate that this means the world as we know it ends then. Some believe the writings of Nostradamus and the Hopi Indians indicate the same thing.

In the past year or two we have seen a significant increase in severe weather. Hurricanes seem to be increasing in number and severity. As have earthquakes and volcano eruptions. Weather patterns in general have been more severe; floods, tsunamis, droughts. In addition we’ve seen world wide financial chaos and now an underwater volcano of oil devastating both nature and man. It’s enough to cause even hardened skeptics to pause now and then.

So, what if the Mayans were right? What should we do about it? What CAN we do about it?

We could take a purely selfish attitude and begin to live as if there is no tomorrow. Max out all your credit cards, engage in whatever risky behavior appeals to you, put forth as little effort as you can and still maintain your employment, cease all charitable donations…it isn’t going to matter anyway so you may as well enjoy the money or time you could donate.

Or, we could choose the other extreme; spend every possible moment in prayer and spiritual pursuits, plus do our best to convince others to do the same. Prayer is always a good thing, but it needs to be accompanied by moving hands and feet.

I have no idea if 2012 will bring the end of our world or not. Even if I was sure that it will, I wouldn’t recommend either of the above extremes.

The bottom line here is that no one is guaranteed tomorrow. Life for any one of us could end in an instant, much as we like to pretend that isn’t true. I don’t see this as a reason for despair. Since today, or even this moment, is all any of us have, then the only logical thing to do is make the most of it. Do whatever you can to brighten your day and the day of all those you come in contact with. Do whatever you can, in big or small ways, to make the world a better place.

The Mayans may not be right, and even if they are, why not make the remaining time as positive as possible? Worry and fear have never produced any kind of positive change. All they do is drain your energy, and make your world a darker place.