let's have an existential crisis together // life + death

I'm in the midst of an existential crisis. I'm pretty sure this has been boiling for a couple years now, but I'm just now recognizing it and addressing it.
...i'm being facetious. (Okay, maybe I'm a little serious) Let's talk about death, baby. Let's talk about you and me. Let's talk about all the good things and the bad things there can be. #LetsTalkAboutDeath
Make sure to drop a comment after the video and let's open up this fucking conversation pit with deep talks about life as we know it - and death as we don't. If you do get involved in some dialogue, please keep it civil, intellectual, and above all else, respectful. we're here to share thoughts and ideas and understand each other so together we can at least make sense of all the shit happening around us at as best we can.
If you like the video, hit that thumbs up jawn, hit that subscribe jawn, and share it on social media! Please and thank you. :)
peace and love,
- steve

[@ryanschockfitness9378]

Dmx was my hero, he was in the same rehab I was in almost a year ago...I'm still sober.. I just lost my dad.. thanks for sharing Man, keep up the positivity

[@SteveGriendling]

no shit? I think I kind of remember you mentioning that before, that's gnarly. we're you there the same time he was?

[@mohamed.maher.]

Hi Steve. Sorry for your losses and thank you very much for sharing that with us. I kind of understand where you're coming from. I lost my father 15 years ago. He died right before my eyes and his death was sudden. One minute he was walking by my side, the next minute he was gone. It took me a couple of years to accept the fact that he was no longer there and for me to pull myself back together and take charge of my life. Tough and difficult times indeed. I know you mentioned you're not religious, but for me what prevented me from falling apart completely and losing it all was faith. I strongly believe in what my faith brings to the table about the purpose of life, what happens after we die, and how to juggle around in this world 'lifetime". You have such a pure soul, Steve, and I hope everything gets sorted for you. From the deepest bottom of my heart, I wish you a pleasant and happy life.

[@SteveGriendling]

sheesh, man. i'm sorry you had to go through that. i had two friends growing up whose dads died tragically, and i saw what they went through. that's tough. it's a funny thing how our minds work, don't you think? look at how emotionally hard we're hit when someone close to us, who we love and have so many memories with, passes away. then consider how odd it is that we can feel that deeply for losing someone, but have this innate ability to flick on the "ignorance is bliss" switch in our mind in order to go about our days with a semblance of normalcy. it's an instinct to avoid being fearful of loss...and the opposite of being fearful is being brave... 🤔 interesting. and we all have different ways of getting through the day, right? to get through it without worry, to be brave. i didn't want to stay on the topic of religion too long, but i hope the quick point i was making about religion came through: religion - or more generally applicable, faith - is good. it serves a purpose for so many people, provides comfort, strength, community. and it was interesting to me to think that what one's idea of heaven under God, and another's idea of reincarnation under quantum theory really aren't that far apart from one another when you think about it. it's fascinating. maybe the only reason one would hate religion and a religious person would hate atheism is simply...a failure to understand one another....🤔 more interesting stuff. i used to be one of those people that would actively interject on someone who'd talk about God; most of the time they weren't even preaching to me. i came to realize later how wrong i was. i always said "as long as you don't preach to me, i won't preach to you." i'm mad at myself for ever being so hypocritical. but we learn and we grow through a series of events in life, some beautiful, like the birth of a child. some tragic, like the death of a father. and it makes us stronger. being mutually passive wouldn't have cut it. it wasn't until i *understood and respected* the value religion has for others that i finally learned the lesson. i think it's important now to instead go out of my way to let people know that they don't have to condescend and denounce someone's beliefs. they don't need to ignore it either. they can exist in the same space as someone with beliefs foreign to their own and truly respect it. i so much appreciate comments like yours, last video's comment included. it's good to connect with people and share, and say our truths. i'll be looking forward to yours from now on. you seem like a well-in-tune guy, with much heart and strength. i'm sure that is exactly the human being your pop hoped he'd be proudly looking down on today. thank you for that window into your life. take care Mohamed. ✌

[@fOk0dAzZ]

Hi steve! Just wanted to tell you you are the GOAT. A true hero.

[@happywanderer111]

Thanks for sharing (it's Lu_emen btw) you have a good soul Steve. Had a lot of anxiety lately too concerning death in family.

[@SteveGriendling]

there's just so much of it lately. but it's inevitable.

[@TechFlake]

Sorry for your loss 💜

[@SteveGriendling]

thank you! 💙

[@kristawinegrdner3816]

We are all ONE in the aggregate of consciousness.The Existentialists might induce anxiety,in the here and now.The Stoics might prescribe remedies that cannot transcend latent trauma.They are not incorrect,however.Just incomplete. The entire point of existence is to strive towards completion.Life is a journey,not a destination.We all leave our own markers on our own roads. Having said that,Spinoza attempted to geometrically transpose of all these various routes of striving for meaning and conclusion....and in the end,he could only conclude that perceiving ourselves as parts of a unity which comprises a whole is our sole pathway to joy and fulfillment. In other words,we are all in this life together.Division is only an illusion. Ultimately,we are all on the same path.

[@SteveGriendling]

i really feel that i needed to go through what i went through, or at least am better for it. growth is the measurement, and it's only measured the day you die. funny enough, by no one other than your last thoughts.

[@kristawinegrdner3816]

@@SteveGriendling If you are better-and enlargened-by what you have gone through,then all I can say is:More power to you and remain steadfast on your path.I do think we are all here to learn and to grow. Or,as a homeless man once said to me over a hot meal we shared," You've just got to fluctuate with the process".... That was years ago,but it has held true :)

[@kerris9133]

Hey, so sorry to hear about your friends, aunt, and everything going on with your dad 😔. I enjoyed this video. Back in my early 20s I went through a phase and got really into philosophy. I have a few books and novels specifically on existentialism. If you're interested I can pass them along to you. My favorite existentialist is Albert Camus and his novel,The Stranger. Check out his work when you get a chance! 😊 love this type of stuff. Keep em' coming with the videos!

[@SteveGriendling]

yeah definitely! I'm currently reading an Alan Watts interpretation of Tao Te Ching, and in my digging I payed more attention to stoicism -never really dove into it, but from what I can tell now that I've started to, both hold the same essence, but taoism is more appealling to my devil may care frame of mind...never cared for pragmatism. lol anyway yes send me all the think titles.

[@SteveGriendling]

also, thanks so much for the compliment!

[@minilea144]

Oi, movie guy, remember me? I checked on you about a month ago. Glad to see you're still ok. As shitty as things have been for you, I know it's been hard. About death, it's prominently on my mind because I live in a medical facility on a breathing machine (I've cystic fibrosis and hypercapnia). Anyway, I'm always thinking if I've left an impact on people so if I died right now would it matter (I lean towards "no"). Trust me, I've heard that crapola of how I've helped so many people by just listening to them but...meh... there's a whole load of shit behind that feeling. I'm done wasting your time. Happy to see you're ok, sad to see the shitty circumstances. Also...FUCK KZbin FOR NOT TELLING ME THIS WAS UPLOADED. I'm 34. I'm legally allowed to swear.

[@SteveGriendling]

ah, so sorry friend. i completely forgot to respond to your comment. actually, if i remember q correctly, i had typed a reply up and then fell asleep. haha story of my life. in my text inbox like 1/3 of my texts have "DRAFT" in the corner. this is a new bad habit...i'm a little pissed about it cus i took pride in how responsive i was to phonecalls and texts. are these conditons developed or were you born with them?

[@minilea144]

I developed them in December of 2018 and have been in a medical facility pretty much since. Quite frankly, I'm tired of it. No matter. When are we getting that movie review?

[@SteveGriendling]

not sure, it's definitely on deck, but it's a massive undertaking. you figure a film is 2 hours long. i would be stopping amd starting, interjecting with insights, knowledge, opinions, etc, sometimes cutting away not to juat myself but other graphics, texts, ans snippets. we're probably talking a 4 hour upload, the way i envision it. i'm not a prep work kinda guy. i like to shoot from the hip, but that's somethinf i wi need to prep for. 100%. i already started on one, but i couldn't tell ya when.

[@minilea144]

@@SteveGriendling Are you still doing ok?

[@SteveGriendling]

no doubt! i've been taking forever with my next video. i had to teach myself a lot, but i knew that was the case, and decided on this project out of a few specifically because i knew it would be a challenge. but i'm *almost* done! (i said that two months ago before i added a scene)

[@niwtahcardnas9644]

So I did shrooms and I hallucinated I died and went to hell for what felt like an eternity. It was the most terrifying experience of my life. It put me into a sprt of traumatized, ptsd existent crisis type thing. I've done everything I can consciously to convince my subconscious it was just an absurd hallucination like all the wild crap you hear of people seeing while on that crap but my emotional body just won't let go. Anyone know what to do for this type of anxiety? I've been to therapists. Didn't really help much. Is there a ptsd/trauma processing technique I'm missing?

[@naturalisted1714]

"We all know, 'life goes on without you' - therefore, if you cease to exist, then the only experience that could follow your end is one of the individual consciousnesses that DO exist." •Theodore Bolha

[@SteveGriendling]

I like that. I'm not familiar with that person.

[@jacquelineentwistle5091]

What does it matter we all die in the end