How much can we calculate in life?

Two thoughts run through my mind when taking this photo –

1. How much can we calculate in life with just a machine? It’s impossible to calculate how much love we have for one another, it’s impossible to calculate how much faith or trust we have in one another, and it is impossible to calculate even our future. So instead of using any kind of measurements to actually see how far and how deep things can go, why not use our hearts?
2. In reality, we do need to use calculation in our everyday lives and I see way too often with friends who are way too frugal. I am in no absolute state where I buy things without looking at the price, but for some, scrutinizing on every dime of things seems to lose the meaning of enjoying life. On the opposite end, I see people who don’t use numbers at all when deciding to buy things and end up regretting their decisions. Without considerations of what you actually can afford, consequences can later be dire. Having a balance in enjoying life within your budget doesn’t mean you have to live luxurious life, sometimes simple things can satisfy life’s cravings.

It is no doubt that with calculation, it can help us solve a lot of things, but it is not to be taken for granted that everything in life is needed for calculation.

 

Photography by MP

Multiplication Times Table Machine in Smithsonian Museum of American History, Washington. D.C., U.S.A.