The other day I heard something I hadn’t heard before, which is pretty good considering I’ve heard most things. Well, except for certain Gen Z concepts, anime slang, and tech jargon. But even there I have to add a qualifier, since I once heard a dude say to another dude at the airport, as he walked away, “Ping me!” I knew what he meant. I’m not ashamed to admit that I don’t know what cosplay or OnlyFans are, though. I suspect the latter has something to do with an aisle at Home Depot, where I actually bought a fan for my daughter’s hair salon. I could be wrong.
What I heard the other day was the term “chapter characters.” The woman using it was referring to those people who come into our lives, stay for a dance or two, and then exit stage right, never to be heard from again. Her implication was that such people are meaningful. They show up for a purpose and—once that purpose is fulfilled—leave. We might not know what that purpose is or whether it’s been fulfilled, but our not knowing doesn’t mean the person wasn’t significant or the purpose unmet. Some things reveal themselves over time. If they don’t by the end of the chapter, then certainly by the end of the book, which is how I envision heaven, but that’s another story.
It seems a little contrived to me—maybe too hopeful. People do come and go. There’s no doubt about that. But to say it’s for a purpose in my life, as if there’s a lesson to be learned, puts me on the path toward narcissism or at least self‑centeredness. After all, who’s to say I’m not the chapter character in their book of life? I find that highly plausible, especially when you consider that most people do not see themselves playing minor parts. Don’t self‑help books rail against that sort of thing? Don’t be a bit player in your own life! I gave similar advice to a friend not long ago: “Don’t be afraid of yourself!” He agreed, although I’m not sure he did anything about it.
I like the idea of “chapter characters” in principle and can think of several people who acted like that in my life. One in particular came and went not long ago. Of course, if you don’t mind my mixing metaphors, the jury’s still out on that one (see Audentes Fortuna Iuvat). Maybe that’s a case of my being too hopeful. I can also identify times when I strolled around the stage as a chapter character in someone else’s life, exiting when the time was right. I didn’t really do anything. The chapter just ended. This is when you hear people talking about “the universe” doing things, which is absurd to me, since what they really mean is God and God’s plan.
There is a logical conclusion to the belief that there are chapter characters or roles that we play in each other’s lives. That conclusion is that the chapter belongs to a book and the book to an author. The same holds for a play. The characters move about the stage, but only within their lines and at the pleasure of the playwright. So, at the heart of chapter characters is the question of the author or playwright and whether we are following the script. Sometimes, not only do we not follow the script, but we fall off the edge of the stage.
Another metaphor comes to mind regarding chapter characters. Rather than people coming and going, I see billiard (pool) balls smashing into each other, banking off the rim of the universe only to go spinning in another direction and smacking other balls they had no intention of hitting. I like this metaphor and can see why it has been a favorite among physicists. You get the randomness of objects shooting off in different directions while maintaining the idea of the ball, which is the essence of something—a unit of energy, a force, or, in my mind at least, the self. What’s missing is intention. Billiard balls have no intention of hitting anything or anyone. They just react.
Maybe that’s the rub with most people. They don’t want to react. They want to take command of their lives and not feel as if they are subject to the whims of chance. I don’t know if “whims of chance” is a thing, but it would make a great title for a novel. I’m sure it would be filled with chapter characters.
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