#2: The Condition of Humanity

People who live with dogs, cats, and other beloved companions know their pets can learn, communicate, and have emotions. Although humanity has these same abilities and needs, we are able to go far beyond our pets' abilities to affect ourselves, one another, and the physical world we live in. The most distinguishing feature of humankind is our inner being that can understand what ishe good and transcendant, but nevertheless at times chooses evil.

One positive about humankind is we always have hopes; other ways to phrase this would be we have visions, desires, aspirations, ambitions, and drives. People naturally reach beyond what they currently have. For example, scientific and medical progress, such as vaccines, results from the vision of people who want to solve human problems. Another illustration of this human quality the pursuit of continual improvements in communication, from the printing press's invention less than 600 years old ago to theChromebooks of today. 

The way people work together to accomplish common goals is another feature of the human condition. Human societies are always trying new ways of...