"Why does the universe go through the bother of existing?" brilliant cosmologist Steven Hawking pondered. Certainly we all share his curiosity about the possibility of decoding and defining the mysteries of existence in the vastness, majesty and mystery of the universe. To me, it matters to ask about, but not necessarily answer, these anomalies and put into perspective the "big picture" that is as big as the universe itself.

From the properties of the smallest subatomic particles to the infinite distances of the farthest galaxies, science answers the questions that affect us. The interaction and existence of every particle is significant, whether a neuron that communicates by transmitting signals to keep our bodies functioning, the particle affecting gravitational force allowing us to stand and not be hurled into space, or even the light particles that are sucked into the centrifuge at the center of a black hole. Who we are, our consciousness as we do (or don’t) understand it, even the defined reality (or realities) we live in, are all part of a great, mysterious web woven at the beginning of the universe and still not untangled by our comprehension.

Yet, what is this reality? Most define it as existence in the community where they live, with the network of those they encounter, and the insignificant problems of a short life on a little blue dot in space somewhere among billions of brighter and bigger stars and planets in the galaxy. This narrow-mindedness is a hindrance to the ultimate understanding that most don’t appreciate.

Why do we even possess the intelligence to ask these questions and come to such profound conclusions? How did reality come about? Why can mathematics attempt to define its properties? What is even going on beneath the subatomic level with all of those quarks and gluons that the universe (or ourselves, for that matter) wouldn’t function without, yet we hardly know any of their properties. Is there a reason that we are the only species who can think up this great understanding of our reality in the universe with only our brains and scientific tools?

It matters to me to ponder my place in the universe and become aware of the ultimate consciousness and our place in it.