"Untitled" by Danieh A

One breezy afternoon in the midst of March, Curyeous, Cluuless, Persepchin, and, Insiytful met up for a cup of coffee. 

Everyone greeted each other with tender smiles and warm looks, poured a cup of coffee for one another, and sat in each other’s vicinities. The friends then proceeded to let their minds wander in thought. Words were unnecessary for their communication for they believed in the words of Kahlil Gibran that “Thought is a bird of space, in a cage of words it may indeed unfold its wings but cannot fly.”  Amidst the comfortable silence, Curyeous interrupted and asked, “If I were to ask each of you for your opinion on the significance of matters; that which matters and that which does not matter; what would you respond?”

Cluuless was the first to respond, “In my opinion, my opinion isn't worthy or valid until I know exactly what I'm talking about. I can't speak in favor of anything unless I wholeheartedly believe in what I'm advocating for. I feel like the majority of the time people’s opinions reflect the ideologies of the environments they’re immersed in or the people they surround themselves by, instead of establishing their opinions after doing their own research themselves. Therefore, I bear no opinion on this matter of the matter of matters in which you speak of.”

Persepchin sat in silence giving herself time to ponder on the question then proceeded saying, “In the perception of an ant, the world is a massive place with a whole bunch of freakishly large giants roaming it. In the perception of a lion, killing another creature bears no guilt to their conscious; the animals they kill are simply a means of feeding themselves and their cubs. That being said, I think it is ignorant and rather arrogant for us human beings (essentially a type of animal) to claim our perception of matters is absolute. I think that no matter what we have learned, what values have been instilled in us, what our faith is, what our opinions are on controversial issues, we must learn to keep an open mind and understand the possibility that the perceptions we have on these matters are incomplete. Like before it was discovered that the Earth was round, people were living by the false “truth” that the Earth came to an end. Always ask questions, and always question the answers you get. In my opinion nothing is set and stone. Therefore, I too bear no opinion on the matter of the matter of matters in which you speak of, because I’m willing to admit that my perception is obscured.”

Finally it was Insiytful’s turn to contribute to the conversation,” Hmm. The matter of matters? Well I think all matters are a matter of matter. The effortless perfection of the swirls of cream in my coffee cup matters, the changing colors of the clouds as the sun rises matters, the giggle the little girl at my job reciprocated after I gave her a silly face matters, the tiny size of a baby's fingers in comparison to mine matters, the sound of my friends snoring after staying up for a project until 4am together on a school night matters, the tears of genuine care and concern in my mother’s face as I unfold my distresses to her matters. The reasons to be in awe of the life that surrounds us are endless, because there is simply so much matter that matters. We are all AMAZING creatures, think of your organs and all the amazing things going on in your own body at this very moment. They matter. Go ahead, revel at how amazing you are, I won't judge you or call you arrogant because it’s true. You matter.”