In this solo reflection, I wrestle with one of the deepest questions I've encountered—not just on this podcast, but in my life: Why should humanity continue at all? What started as pre-travel anxiety before a flight to Peru led me to reflect on the season’s central thread. Throughout Season 8, I’ve spoken with anthropologists, philosophers, educators, and spiritual thinkers, asking them one question that underlies all others: Why educate? The more people I spoke to, the clearer it became—there is no definitive answer. And yet, within every conversation, a quiet constant emerged.

This episode explores the strange and wonderful possibility that the purpose of life, and education, lies not in certainty, but in awe. Not in finding answers, but in holding questions. I reflect on how awe—deep, sustained, reverent wonder—may be the highest form of learning and the most honest response to being human. I unpack how education too often mistakes mastery for meaning, and how true learning might instead be about revealing complexity and standing together in the face of the unknown. If you've ever felt unsure, if you've ever wondered whether this is all worth it, this episode is for you. Maybe the experience of that uncertainty is the most beautiful part of being alive.