It rained for a couple of days recently. The sun came out today and its warmth was wonderful. Basking under the rays of brilliance, I felt the stress that had built up the past few weeks melting away. Ahh.

It won’t rain forever. But neither will it shine to eternity.

The thousands of days we live in our lifetime flows like a sort of rollercoaster, taking wild turns, dipping and peaking in sequence and sometimes just coasting along. The flirtatious tease of the delightful soar to the top is accompanied by the dramatic downfall into depression. Confused, scared perhaps, youthful passengers learn to either enjoy or be terrified of this ride. Some look up, knowing there will be a time when the skies will feel closer again, and the view below will be marvelous and novel. Some look down, nerve racked by altitude, shuddering at the drop to come. Some — many, in fact — want to escape this nauseating cycle before it comes to its natural end. A few do.

This may be a rather dark depiction of life. Or it may be just an illustration of different perspectives. Nevertheless, it’s an exchange we all are familiar with. It is rare that everything is wholly happy or wholly sad.

As an existentialist, or just about anyone who’s thought about death, may claim, nothing on this ride really matters. Just as the beginning is the same for all of us, the end is no different, no matter what the path may look like in between. So why should we care to be happy or sad? Why should there even be this hope, this despair, to expect anything?

Because that argument is absolute bullshit. The rain that falls on us isn’t just from the sky, but also from those around us. This isn’t a lonely ride; you matter. Every one matters to every other. The factors that determine the next few courses of events comprise of those around, and vice versa.

I don’t mean to be too corny or cliché. What matters to me is that I matter, that I am of matter to those around me, and that there are individuals who matter to me as well. The give and take isn’t always smooth, there are indeed things in the world out of our control. That shouldn’t affect how we handle what we can control.

It’s bittersweet; like a cup of coffee. An enjoyable cup of coffee. So take a sip and seek the warmth in its black flavor.