I always push back on the concept of karma, that “what goes around comes around.” I don’t disbelieve it, but I’m also not aware of any real evidence that “what you put out in the world comes back to you.”

Really, I think it’s just something people say and believe in to make themselves feel better.

And that’s okay. The adherence to such a code doesn’t harm anyone. But a small voice inside me always retorts: do good because it’s right, because you want to. Even if there’s no cause or sensible connection to your suffering, accept it as a condition of being a part of this miraculous universe, and decide to still do good.

This independence, this ability to choose our way, despite hardship or circumstances, is what makes us human. The contributions we make to the universe come from conviction, not as a response to a stimulus. We can change the world, not because something good happened to us, but because we want to.