There is no permanence

It is universally understood by humanity that there is no permanence.  Even with the acknowledgement of this fact people still feel the need to get up and go about with their daily lives knowing that most of what they do will never be remembered after their death.  So the question is asked, “Why do anything at all?”  Why not just sit around and do nothing because nothing you do will ever last longer than your death and if your lucky, maybe some time after that.  I believe in the lyric from the Broadway Show Avenue Q, “Everything in life is for now.”  It is a simple quotation explaining that regardless of the situation it is important to live your life for “now,” to live in the moment knowing that everything you have one day is capable of being gone the next and being able to enjoy oneself.  In our world there are two types of people.  People who live for their life, fully acknowledging the fact that when they die, most likely they will not be remembered by anyone except surviving family.  They continue on with their lives because for them, living out their life happily or at least, in the attempt to be ‘happy’ is more fulfilling than living life doing nothing and complaining about life being futile and meaningless.  To this type of person, a fulfilling life (by whatever that means to that person) with impermanence is better than a non-fulfilling life with impermanence.  However, people still look for ways to bring about permanence.  Gilgamesh looks fervently at ways to last forever, scared of death by the passing of Enkidu.  He alas, does not succeed, but his efforts are seen in modern society, but not as bluntly and as straightforward.  Modern society seeks permanence almost unconsciously while accepting impermanence, which may be why people just don’t give up on life because it is futile.  In modern day religion, most practices promise the person of faith eternal life in heaven or some form of it.  Medicine looks to stretch a person’s life span.  The population of senior citizens has risen because old people are living longer due to medicine.  Even in a life of acknowledged impermanence, humans tirelessly work towards permanence, or so firmly believe that they will be able to accomplish permanence in their lifetime that they don’t acknowledge impermanence.  When people die, they find meaning in life through their accomplishments and their passions that will hopefully live on after they do.  Having a family is one of those things.  When a person has a child, that child reflects their parent.  Extending family trees are perfect examples of a kind of permanence.  Although the original person may be dead and forgotten.  They live on through their descendents.  Literature is another example of this.  Author, who have been long dead, still have their works of literature read.  Tolkien, Huxley, and Dr. Seuss just to name a few authors who have not been forgotten because of their contribution to literature.  Gilgamesh, after returning home distraught to not have found immortality, “engraved on a stone the whole story.”  Gilgamesh found meaning in his life after his adventures by engraving his epic adventures.  Through his records, his legacy will live on and Gilgamesh can die a fulfilled man because he knows that due to his story, he has a chance of lasting past his death. 
With all of this in mind, it is still understood that everyone dies and eventually forgotten, but as a wise wizard (Gandalf) once said, “Death is but the next great adventure.”