Right? Wrong.

Was the last post a little depressing for you? Good. It should have been. We're the only species that knows what a free lunch is, but we can still screw it up. Why is that?

I suppose the answer to that question depends on what you think we are - as a species - or why we might even be here, or whether there's a purpose to all of this, or perhaps whether it doesn't matter in the end at all.

The Germans have a word that I just love (well, they have a number of words I love, but this is really one of my favorites): Menschenbild. A Mensch is a person; a Bild is a picture, so in simplest terms its a picture of persons; that is, it's our view (and understanding) of what a person really is, what makes a human being a human being. It's our view of what people essentially are.

Be honest. Most of you have never stopped to think about it. Oh sure, I'm convinced that every single one of you has a Menschenbild, and I'm guessing it's pretty much your own. I'm also just as sure that you have no idea how you got it, when you developed it, or why it is the way it is, but you have one nevertheless. What's so fascinating about taking a foreign-language approach to something you take for granted is the fact that it can get you looking at something quite everyday in a new light. Having a word, a concept, to describe it, it's very simple to ask someone, So, what's your Menschenbild? Have you ever thought about the answer? You should.

Why? Because no matter what it is, that Menschenbild of yours, it determines, forms, shapes, colors, and influences every single action you take when dealing with another human being. Now, I'm not talking about some grand or grandiose image of the meaning of humanity. No, I'm simply talking about what you think makes a person and why. We all have such an image, but we don't all know how we got the one we have, nor why we have it, and most importantly, just what an important role in our lives that image plays.

For some of you we're all sinners, for others selfish, greedy grubbers; for some we're all deep down fundamentally good, for others fundamentally bad. If you've never thought about it, maybe you should. You'd be surprised what might come of it. Your Menschenbild lies behind all your dealings with every other human being, and for that reason, it's worth knowing what it is. More importantly, though, whatever it is says more about you than anyone else.