Processes of Extinction

“All things move towards their end.”

Just as in the natural world, the process of extinction can be slow or sudden. This quote is from Nick Cave’s songs. Nick Cave used this phrase in two different songs. One of them is important to me, it’s called “Do you love me?”   I can’t remember how I realized these words, but I can feel the emotion that moved me.  “All things move towards their end” I repeated over and over again. When the songs I listen to remind me of feelings I have felt before, it gives me a different sense of connectedness and peace. It makes me feel like we’re not alone. Sometimes I think we share the same fate in different lives.

This statement, “All things move towards their end,” is often referred to as the concept of entropy in thermodynamics. This means that the universe is constantly moving towards a state of greater disorder and that all things will ultimately come to an end.

Before I write about what the ending means to me, I would like to say that this is not the only thing from Nick Cave that gives me this feeling. Nick Cave made me who I am today. I have been listening to him since 2011. In fact, I can not only listen but also read and watch. He is very versatile and has produced hundreds of things so far. I feel lucky to have met such a person in the process of finding myself and I know that this is an essential but difficult detail for many people to realize.

~The ending part

I know that everything has an end, but at the same time, there is no end. It never ends, they just turn into something else. Science calls it the ‘first law of thermodynamics’ and we apply it to everything in the world. Love turns into hate and death somehow turns into life for other living beings. We just need to realize it, it can make it easy to live without chaos.

Many of the emotions we feel are related to endings. Our fears, the way we make decisions, and even the way we feel happiness, are all about endings that we think about without even realizing it. I would say that the endings we avoid keep us alive, but at the same time, they make our lives more difficult.

The end is exactly what survival is all about. Our evolution is based on survival. The brain is always trying to find something dangerous to become stronger. This makes us fear ends. We are afraid because fear keeps us alive. But I know that understanding the cause of our fear makes us stronger than being afraid. So, I just try to develop a new perspective on the end.

~Leftovers

Everything that ends leaves something behind. It is sometimes difficult to accept what are leftovers, but it is the best way to find peace. As time goes by, that’s all you remember. The life we live and the person we are is the accumulation of all these things. I’m glad things are over. Despite everything, I’m okay with what’s left. It’s the endless things that scare me. The feeling of unfinishedness is like torture that will never end. Without realizing it, we are looking for an end to unfinished things, sometimes only in our heads and sometimes all over our lives.

It’s important to process and address these “leftovers” in order to maintain good mental and emotional health. This can involve a variety of strategies, such as therapy, journaling, or practicing mindfulness. It’s important to work through these feelings and experiences to help make sense of them and to find ways to release them so that they no longer have a negative impact on one’s life.

~Sense of incompleteness

This feeling can be distressing and can cause an individual to fixate on what is missing, rather than focusing on what has been accomplished or what they have. It’s killing me. I’m always thinking about how it could end. I can’t stop imagining different scenarios. One piece of advice for me: please don’t start if you can’t finish. I’m trying to understand what made me give up. The emotions that stop me from accepting certain endings can prevent me from seeing the end of the situation I am in.

The sense of incompleteness can be a result of the expectation that everything in life should be neat and tidy, but this is not always possible or realistic. The reality is that life is full of unresolved issues, unfinished business, and emotional baggage that we carry with us. It’s important to learn to live with this sense of incompleteness and to accept that life is a journey, not a destination.

~The moment you’re in

The greatest challenge is to live in the moment. Living in the moment, focusing on it, accepting it in all its fullness… It is often said that the present moment is the only time that truly exists, as the past is gone and the future is yet to come. It can be seen as a reminder to focus on the present and let go of worries about the future or regrets about the past. I think this is the best situation in life. But it’s not as easy as it seems. Sometimes we miss the process because we focus too much on the result.

I prefer to take pictures with my analog camera because of the feeling it gives me. But there’s more to it than that, it’s an analog process, and no matter how fast you want it to be, you have to wait to see the result. I enjoy that waiting. I am aware of this then I realize that in the ordinary flow of life, I forget to enjoy the process so much. I need to remember that life is not different.

In summary, “The moment you’re in” is a reminder to focus on the present and to let go of the past and future, to be fully engaged, and to find peace in the present.

“All things move towards their end” All things have a beginning and an end. This doesn’t have to be seen as a negative thing, but rather as a reminder that we should cherish and make the most of the time we have with the people we love. It can also be interpreted as the idea that everything in life is temporary and fleeting, including our romantic relationships. This can serve as a reminder to appreciate the beauty and joy in the present moment, knowing that it will eventually come to an end.

Aysenur Kursun