I was thinking about the whole idea of predestination and whether I support the notion.
I think I believe in it to a certain extent, but I wouldn't exactly say I believe in fate... more destiny than fate, I'd say.
What's the difference? They're two words for the same idea, many would argue. I would say they are very similar when you look at it from an objective standpoint. The words reflect nearly identical ideas. After much thought, however, I've realized the difference that I've been unable to articulate until now. Purpose.
To me, fate is pointless predestination. You experience what you experience because you were meant to do so. That's it. Destiny, on the other hand, carries meaning. You go through what you do not because you're simply meant to do it, but rather because it has a purpose. In my opinion, destiny implies there is a means to an end. Everything that you're meant to see and do happens for a reason, our task as human beings is to find out what that reason is.
The idea of fate, in my opinion, is an excuse. We go through hardship or experience fortune and attribute it to fate. It was simply planned out to be this way. Therefore, I don't have to think about it anymore. If I can just call everything fate, I don't have to think about WHY things happen... they just seem to happen.
Stepping back and looking for meaning behind events encourages people to grow, to become better human beings. If we don't look for this meaning, we become stagnant.
We gotta keep thinking. We gotta find our purpose. If we don't, our existence is meaningless, no?
