The Meaning of Life, Love and Pineapple on Pizza

January 28, 2026

At some point in every serious discussion about existence, someone will ask the big question.

“What is the meaning of life?”

This is usually followed by a thoughtful silence, a sip of coffee, and absolutely no useful answer whatsoever.

I’ve given this some thought. Possibly too much. And having flirted briefly with the edge of things, I can now report back with confidence that the universe does not, in fact, provide a laminated instruction manual. There is no checklist. No final exam. No pop-up message saying, “Congratulations, you’ve worked it out.”

Which brings us neatly to pineapple on pizza.

For reasons I cannot fully explain, this particular topic provokes more passion than politics, religion, or quantum mechanics. Friendships have been strained. Families divided. Civilisations possibly fallen.

Some people love it. Some people loathe it. Both sides are absolutely convinced they are right.

And that, I think, is the point.

The meaning of life is not a single answer everyone agrees on. If it were, we’d have settled it by now and moved on to something less controversial, like whether time travel would ruin punctuality.

Life, it turns out, is closer to a menu than a manifesto.

You try things. Some you love. Some you tolerate. Some you push to the side of the plate and quietly promise never to order again. Love works much the same way. You don’t always recognise it immediately. Sometimes it arrives in unexpected combinations. Sometimes it makes no sense to anyone else, and that’s fine.

Near death doesn’t reveal a secret truth about existence. It just strips away the nonsense.

You realise that most of what we argue about doesn’t matter. That being right is far less important than being kind. That love is rarely neat, often inconvenient, and occasionally comes with toppings you didn’t ask for.

And that’s okay.

If there is a meaning to life, it might simply be this. Choose what brings you joy without insisting everyone else agrees. Care for people, even when you don’t understand them. And don’t waste too much time pretending there’s a perfect answer waiting just around the corner.

As for pineapple on pizza?

If you like it, enjoy it. If you don’t, order something else. There’s room on the table for all of us.

Which, now I think about it, is probably the closest thing to wisdom the universe ever offers.