“Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.” Stephen Hawking
“He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.” Albert Einstein
I’m not sure what’s more awe-inspiring—the wonder of impossibility or the wonder of possibility. I spent my whole career focused on human and organizational possibilities. As I get older, however, I find that the wonder of impossibility fills me with more, well . . . possibility. When I reflect on the sheer impossibility of my existence in this moment in time, I’m filled with gratitude that I had a chance to experience what I did in my life.
In our current context, that shift has helped me live each day a little less dumbfounded and depressed by the amount of sheer stupidity, cruelty, recklessness, and delusional thinking that leaders around the world (ours in particular) exhibit every day. What may be worse is the blind faith that their followers have in their leader’s ability to follow through on their promises. It seems impossible that we have arrived where we are on the arc of civilization. This post, however, addresses an entirely different sense of impossibility that may help us deal with the improbability of ending up with the worldviews we have developed in the world we have been given.
To me, the wonder of impossibility lies at the heart of our very existence, revealing a profound mystery that defies complete understanding. The fact that we exist at all, in the vast expanse of time and space, is a testament to the extraordinary improbability of life and consciousness.
The universe’s origin approximately 14 billion years ago presents the first in a series of miraculous events. The Big Bang theory posits a sudden expansion from an extraordinarily dense and hot state, leading to the birth of space and time itself. In A Brief History of Time, Stephen Hawking describes the precise conditions necessary for such an event to occur and subsequently for matter to coalesce into stars, galaxies, and planets. It all seems completely unfathomable. As physicist Lawrence Krauss (2012) articulates in A Universe from Nothing, the emergence of a universe capable of supporting life from an initial quantum fluctuation challenges notions of chance and necessity, highlighting the astonishing improbability of our being.
Following this cosmic inception, the formation of Earth around 4 billion years ago represents another series of improbable circumstances. The cosmic chance that led to Earth’s unique combination of right distance from the Sun, a protective magnetic field, and the presence of water, created a cradle for life. The emergence of life from non-living chemistry remains one of science’s greatest mysteries and a testament to nature’s uncanny capacity for complexity from simplicity. Scientific insights evoke a sense of wonder about the razor-thin margin that separates chaos from order and non-life from consciousness.
In our current situation, we are witnessing an ever-widening gulf between order and chaos, between law and lawlessness, between truth and belief. It seems impossible that an increasing number of autocrats in our own country and around the world are brazenly ignoring the rules of order to enrich themselves and expand their power. Incomprehensibly violent actions across the globe feel like an attack on possibility. This disheartening reality makes me want to simply step back and appreciate the awe of being here. And yet it’s worth remembering how our species arrived at this point on our “evolutionary” path.
Our journey from single-celled organisms to the highly complex, thinking creatures we are today underscores an improbable trajectory. Darwin’s theory of natural selection, emphasizing the random mutation and survival of advantageous traits, illuminates an extraordinary process of biological refinement. The development of human consciousness, self-awareness, and cultural complexity suggests that a minimal set of circumstances could somehow give rise to awareness itself, an enigma discussed by philosophers such as David Chalmers (1996), who ponders the “hard problem” of consciousness—how subjective experience arises from physical processes.
Our existence within an unimaginably vast universe further underscores this improbability. Our solar system is but one among approximately 100 billion in the Milky Way galaxy, which itself is but one among approximately 100 billion galaxies in the observable universe. This mind-boggling scale inspires a sense of humility and awe. Cosmologist Carl Sagan famously remarked, “We are a way for the universe to know itself,” emphasizing that our consciousness is a rare and precious window into the universe’s vast mystery.
This cosmic perspective fosters deep gratitude. If the likelihood of existing at all is so minuscule—arising from a succession of improbable events—then every moment becomes a gift, an extraordinary anomaly worth cherishing. As the philosopher William Irwin suggests, recognizing the improbability of our existence can induce a profound appreciation for the present, transforming everyday life into an awe-inspiring experience rooted in the recognition of its miraculous nature.
It is this perspective that gives me the courage to make the most out of every day we are lucky enough to live. While the world is a mysterious gift, our worldviews are a choice. Those worldviews are largely impacted by the political, religious, and social environments in which we live, learn, love, and work. If we over-identify with any rigid ideology, then we reduce our openness to new possibilities. If we imagine we are more than who we really are, we reduce our ability to see the world with impartial and objective detachment. If we fill ourselves with negative thoughts and feelings, then we leave less room for fulfilling experiences. On the other hand, by reducing identification, imagination (ego), and negative emotions, we are more likely to be able to fill ourselves with gratitude for each day we are given. As Mitch Albom challenges us in his new book, Twice, we don’t need second chances; we just need to make better choices in each moment.
Fully internalizing the reality that we are one of 8 billion people living on this magnificent planet in an infinitely vast universe enables us to see how small, insignificant, and impermanent we are. And yet, It is this “smallness” that enables us to experience the greatest potential just to be. No ego. Simply gratitude. Fully present. Now.
Peter Matthiessen, in his book Snow Leopard, captures this experience through a diary of his expedition into the Himalayas in search of the sacred and remote Crystal Mountain. Throughout his journey, Matthiessen encounters the awe-inspiring and often harsh natural beauty of the region, which fosters a sense of wonder and reverence. For example, he finds joy in the impossible beauty of the majestic landscapes—towering mountains, shimmering glaciers, and delicate flora—that seem almost otherworldly. These scenes evoke a profound sense of wonder, reminding him that even the most formidable obstacles, such as the difficult terrain and unpredictable weather, are part of a greater, awe-inspiring natural order. For me, Matthiessen’s reflections bring to life and provide a perfect metaphor for the essence of this post and the reality we are living today.
Paradoxically, it’s our embrace of impossibility that may lead us to expanded possibilities. In spite of being a speck of dust scattered in the midst of debris from whatever soul-sucking, career- crushing, ideal-shattering experiences we may encounter, there are still (hopefully) many moments of joy and possibility along the way. For a deeper dive into that phenomenon on a geo-political level, read this article by a Harvard professor.
At the end of the day, I feel full of gratitude for the moments of joy I have experienced with my family, my friends, and the nonprofit organizations with whom I have been privileged to work. I guess the best we can expect from life is that sacred moments and suffering will always live together side-by-side. For me, those sacred moments are more likely to occur when I fully appreciate the impossibility of being here in the first place. Only then do real possibilities open up.
I’m hoping you will find renewed wonder in the impossibility of being here now. And I’m hoping you will find sacred moments and moments of joy alongside whatever suffering you are experiencing. May it be so
