Would You Want to Know How Long You Will Live?
The Measure by Nikki Erlick is a novel where one day, every adult receives a box containing a length of string that corresponds to the length of their life. The characters initially do not understand the meaning of these mysterious strings but once they do, some people choose to look at their string length others choose not to.
I am not sure which I would choose. Probably not to look. At this point, after getting sick in my 20’s I have already thought about what measures my life. I’ve decided that time is less important to me than quality.
This book discusses various ethical issues from a variety of different perspectives. Is it a good idea to have kids with someone if you know that person won’t live long? Is it smart to elect a politician who will die mid-way through their term?
The most simplistic, obvious answer to these is no. Why go through all that trouble for something that won’t be long-term? It seems unnecessarily painful and inconvenient.
Measuring Length & Quality of Life
The book takes place in the United States and the author mentions the amount of U.S. presidents that have so far died while in office: eight.
Four of these were by assassination and four were from natural causes.
Included in this list are Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy which are some of the most notable U.S. presidents in history. If they were not elected, they would not have had this lasting impact. If voters knew beforehand that they would not live long, would that have affected the election results?
Similarly, there is the issue of parenthood.
Would you choose a spouse knowing they will die soon?
I think if anyone could choose if they had a spouse that lives long or a spouse that dies early, almost everyone would choose the spouse that will live a long life.
But this assumes the people they are comparing are of equal quality. I think we have all known amazing people who died too young and older people who lived longer than we feel they deserve.
Years on Their Own Don’t Add Value- Our Behaviour & Choices Do
Now that I have reached a certain level of maturity and 33 years of life, I have a greater perspective on this than when I was younger.
Years do not add value to relationships or achievements. Effort does.
If I could choose between having an amazing friend who changes my life for the better but dies five years after I meet them or an unpleasant friendship that lasts a lifetime, I would choose the former. The value that a person has to others does not depend on the length of their life.
Pets are a good example of this. Their lives are typically much shorter than human lives but we love them immensely. The length of their string wouldn’t matter to us. It is the strength of the love that matters.
We each get to decide how we measure our lives. It’s not just the length of it that counts.
Messy Bun Book Lover
(Originally posted on Mar. 30, 2025)
The Measure by Nikki Erlick is available here.
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