Response #2

"Hello C, Do you believe in soulmates and a 'predetermined fate'? If not, then to what extent do you think we can exercise our free will to get the desired outcome? xoxo" - yomawm

Good evening yomawm,

I hope this respond finds you in places you do not wish to be found even by the big guy in the sky himself. And if he does not, just know that one day you will be found either by your soulmate, me, your mother, or yourself. You do not get to pick which one.

This is what I imagine life to be like. Things happen whether you want them to or not. This does not mean there is or isn't free will. You can make your own choices, although, I am loathe to think you make many good ones.

Regardless, the choices you make are limited, much like your sense of humour and ability to select a reasonable alias. Let me give you an example:

Gun to your head, you have one second to pick which leg of yours will be cut off via chainsaw.

Now, there are a few options of course, I assume most people would like to pick their non-dominant leg. (If you already had one prosthetic leg, would you get that one cut off since it wouldn't hurt, or the real one, so both your legs could match?) One must consider several variables in this situation, since you have asked me such a question, I am almost certain you have one answer that does not involve legs at all.

This brings us to the second most obvious answer: which of course, is to eat the gun.

Now, this would be bad for several reasons, the main one being lead poisoning. You should also consider that you have to eat the trigger before the second is over so that the perpetrator does not pull it before you have even finished your meal.

Naturally, you could assume then, that the answer is to eat the hand.

This is not unwise. However, the timing once again is important, as is your positioning. There are 20 muscles in the forearm and it takes less than that to pull the trigger. You would have to position yourself out of the direct and indirect line of fire as you attack the arm. Direct for obvious reasons: to not get shot (I spelt it out for you because I think that it may have gone over your head, the bullet will not, just to be clear). Indirect, also for obvious reasons: to not get shot as the wrist is a flexible creature and biting any part of the body can cause involuntary movement and once again put you in the direct line of fire.

And, as previously mentioned, it is a lot to eat in one second.

Now, there are a lot more possible choices, but I do not have the time, energy, or will to go through an exhaustive list. I am also not disillusioned into thinking that you could come up with an exhaustive list without exhausting yourself first.

And no, I have not forgotten about the chainsaw, I know it will be much tastier than the gun but I am straying from the main question here. (Is this free will or predetermined fate?).

So. The correct answer, if you want to keep both your legs assuming, for the sake of the question, you were attached to them (both physically and mentally), is of course to redefine yourself.

Is it not easier to redefine the gun? You may ask. No it is not, because the essence of a gun is not as conceptual or as fluid as you are.

What about redefining violence then? That's a concept. So close bestie! The definition of violence does not reside within you. Only you do.

You are as much of a person as you think you are. You are the only one that can define yourself and you will do it incorrectly for your whole life. This is because there is no correct answer. You do not belong in a dictionary. You, my dear question asker, belong in an institution that teaches you how to spell 'your mom' correctly as well as how to ask unique questions.

If you redefine yourself, the situation becomes easily solvable. I will not tell you how to perform such an act, nor will I tell you what the new definition should include. This is primarily because I do not care. But, luckily for you, your individual process and outcome of redefinition is the answer to your original question.

I have given you enough to reach a reasonable conclusion to your question, however, I am under the impression that you may need more explanation as your question tried to connect four different concepts that are not nearly as intertwined as you believe.

The four concepts are of course: soulmates, predetermined fate, free will, and, desirable outcome.

I will not delve into all four individually as that will take me a long time and, while I know you have nothing better to do than read my 20 page essay on this, I do not want to bore my other readers. And also, I have better things to do, such as: your mother.

So, instead of expanding your question, I shall shrink it down to the thin thread that loosely covers these bases. The chainsaw is more important than the gun. This is an important fact to remember. However, it is not the answer, it is only a terrible mockery of one.

The answer is, obviously, is the fact that you are more important than the chainsaw.

Are you following?

It does not affect me in the slightest if you are or not. But you might want to know I was lying about that being the answer. (Bet it made you think though, I know that's rare for you which is why I thought I should do some community service.)

Do you believe in soulmates and a 'predetermined fate'? You asked me. But this question is wrong. There is no need for an 'and' here.

This is the same as asking if I believe in aliens and the queen of England. I believe in only one of them.

So, do I believe in soulmates? Yes, your mother and I make quite the pair.

Do I believe in predetermined fate? Yes and no.

Do I believe in the overlap of these two things? No.

The answer, as I said before, lies in the redefinition of yourself.

What is a soulmate? What is fate? How predetermined does it need to be for it to be classified as such? Who is determining this? On what basis? And, more importantly, why?

If we assume a soulmate to be someone that understands and loves you unconditionally, I can end this essay sooner rather than later. I will not define the type of relationship you have with your soulmate as relationships are also not usually as easily definable. I am also, not a dictionary and have reached my limit of defining words for you. Please consult the relevant texts next time before asking me such a question.

So, what makes a soulmate?

The stars don't care about you. You cannot look to them for your answer.

There is no ingredient list. There is no formula making you and someone else compatible. Who said soulmates were compatible? Love and understanding is not action. It is not even necessarily respect. Love and understanding are nothing but words. The world is not made up of words. Neither are you.

What makes a soulmate is choice.

This is also, a lie. However, it is more true than it is not.

This is because reality is less real than it is. At the same time, it is also more real than it isn't.

Have I lost you yet?

To make it simpler: If the person pointing the gun at your head is your soulmate, is that love? Technically it could be. Does that make it healthy? Probably not. Does this person understand that you do not want to give up either of your legs? It is likely that they do. But they are doing it anyway.

Does this make them your soulmate?

Understanding does not mean acceptance. Love does not mean-

Love means a lot of things and none of them at the same time. But now is not the time for this.

Soulmate does not mean compatibility. Soulmate does not mean healthy relationship. Soulmate does not mean relationship.

Soulmate doesn't mean anything.

Until it does.

Until you decide it does. Until you decide to include this person in your definition. Until this person decides to include you. Until you both put in the work to use the understanding to make something good.

Love is the act of choice.

It deserves to be respected. Loathe as I am to admit it, so do you, my lovely question asker.

A soulmate is a person.

That is all it means. A person who has defined themself. A person who has redefined themself. Your definitions do not need to match. In fact, they never will. By this logic, you will never know if they are your soulmate.

Logic is not important.

Choice is the only thing that matters.

Do you get it yet?

We are fish in an aquarium. We are free to roam wherever we want. To do what we want. Is this free will? The aquarium may be so large we will never find the glass containing us. This does not mean the glass does not exist.

All the choices you make are your own. How many choices are there? How many do you have access to? How many are outside the walls of the aquarium?

Do you get it yet?

You define yourself. You define yourself and you do it wrong. You define yourself and you do it consistently. You will never stop. This is your curse. This is your blessing. This is free will. This is the lack of choice. This is what it means to be human.

Many disregards,

C.