From Gregory Stock’s The Book of Questions: If you were to live for 1,000 years, do you think you might soon feel jaded or unable to relate to those around you? How hard would it be to know you’d outlive everyone you love?

Last week, we tackled the question of whether living for 1,000 years would be a dream come true or a never-ending nightmare. I shared my thoughts on the potential loneliness that comes with outliving everyone you love and the logistics of keeping yourself occupied for all those extra centuries. But this week, let’s dive a little deeper into the emotional toll of immortality.

Picture this: you’re 500 years old, and you’ve just attended the funeral of your great-great-great-great-great-grandchild. You’ve watched generations come and go, and you’re starting to feel like the world’s most overqualified babysitter. Sure, you’ve had plenty of time to perfect your baking skills and finally finish that 10,000-piece puzzle, but at what cost?

The truth is, I can’t imagine the profound sense of loss that must come with outliving everyone you’ve ever known. It’s like being the sole survivor of a shipwreck, except instead of floating on a lifeboat for a few days, you’re adrift for centuries. And let’s be real – after a while, even the most introverted among us would start to crave some human connection.

But it’s not just about the people you love. It’s about the world around you. Imagine watching society evolve and change in ways you never could have predicted. One day, you’re marveling at the invention of the smartphone, and the next, you’re trying to wrap your head around the fact that people can now upload their consciousness to the cloud. It’s like being stuck in a real-life version of Black Mirror, and you’re the only one who remembers life before the robot uprising.

And then there’s the question of purpose. When you have all the time in the world, how do you find meaning in your life? Do you become a full-time philanthropist, dedicating yourself to solving the world’s problems? Or do you retreat into a life of solitude, writing the next great American novel and hoping that someone will still be around to read it in a few hundred years?

Ultimately, I think the answer comes down to perspective. If you’re able to find joy in the little things – a perfectly brewed cup of coffee, a stunning sunset, a heartfelt conversation with a stranger – then maybe, just maybe, you could make it through 1,000 years with your sanity intact. But if you’re the type of person who needs constant stimulation and social interaction, then immortality might just be your worst nightmare.

So, dear reader, I pose the question to you once again: would you want to live for 1,000 years? Would you be able to find meaning and purpose in a life that spans centuries, or would you crumble under the weight of your own longevity? And more importantly, do you think you’d still be able to stomach those chalky conversation hearts after a few hundred Valentine’s Days?

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below – and don’t worry, I promise not to judge you if you’re secretly tempted to sign up for the immortality club. After all, who am I to question your life choices? I’m just a humble blogger trying to make sense of this crazy, beautiful, finite existence we call life.