We Are The Archaeopteryx

The meaning of life… or “we are the archaeopteryx”

People often ask deep and philosophical questions about life and it’s origins.  Some of the most intriguing queries ask why humans behave the shitty way we do.  Why do we do the horrible things that  humans are capable of?  Why do we subject ourselves to the wide range of abject pain, death, poverty, abuse, torture, and fetishes that animals just… don’t seem to be capable of?  Essentially, why do we do the things that separate human beings from the rest of the animal kingdom?  What I believe to be the answer to this question, is (in my opinion), so simple and elegant that it seems all too obvious once you hear it.  

Let’s go back to the early Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period, around 151 to 148 million years ago.  At the time, there was an animal about the size of a chicken running around called the archaeopteryx.  This little guy is important, because he was the evolutionary link between dinosaurs and modern birds.  Moreover, this little rascal had wings.  Not just any wings, but the first wings to be structured like a modern bird’s, with feathers and what not.  I.E., the first WORKING wings.  Now the extremely important thing to note here, is that these were the first wings that were functional.  They worked, but not extremely well.  In fact, not very well at all.  The poor archaeopteryx wasn’t capable of flight per se, but he could flap those wings and create enough lift to fly/flunk up a few feet.  Perhaps just enough to get to the top of a shrub or some bushes.  Perhaps just enough to get to safety when being chased by a predator on the ground.  No, this wasn’t flight by any means, but the archaeopteryx could launch itself airborne just enough to survive.  This benefit to it’s survival proved to be valuable, and this allowed it to out-compete other species and live on to evolve further.  As this evolution progresses, the ancestors of the arcaeopteryx that are able to fly higher, and farther, stand a better chance of survival and pass those genes on.  Millions of years worth of evolution later, and we have modern birds that can fly across oceans and continents.  But nature’s master aviators wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for that little fucking archaeopteryx that could barely fly 3 feet to save his own ass.  

Now the truth is very simple; WE are the archaeopteryx.  We are the first beings on Earth capable of abstract though, manipulating the environment, machining and using tools, having sexual fetishes, etc.  …not to mention making music, making art, athletics, expressing love in the way we do, and all the other things that make humans, human.  The thing about all of these is… we’re just not very good at them.  We might think we are, but we’re really a narcissistic bunch, and our victories are relative.  The truth, I’m afraid to say, is that we’re still flunking around with our little archaeopteryx half-wings.  We might THINK we’re good at making music, making art, expressing love, using tools, etc.  and some of us are okay at some of these things.  Don’t get me wrong.  However, we still fuck it up for the most part.  Even the people who are really dialed in on something are essentially only flying four feet off the ground when everyone else is barely clearing three.  

Imagine what society will be like when we, as humans, are capable of “flight”.  It’s interesting and important to point out, at that point we will probably no longer be “human” in the sense that we consider ourselves today.