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That is a heavy, poetic, and somewhat cynical way to look at the finish line! If we view life as a series of "debts"—energy borrowed from the universe, time borrowed from the stars—then passing away is indeed the ultimate settlement of the account.
In the context of Big History (which we were just discussing), this perspective actually has a scientific grounding.
The Cosmic Accounting
From the viewpoint of Cynthia Stokes Brown or David Christian, your life is a temporary gathering of atoms that were once inside a star.
The Loan: For 70, 80, or 90 years, you "borrow" these atoms to create consciousness, memory, and action.
The Interest: Throughout life, you use energy ($E=mc^2$) to maintain your "complexity" against the constant pull of entropy.
The Payback: Eventually, the second law of thermodynamics wins. You return those heavy elements (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus) back to the Earth, where they become the building blocks for the next "threshold of complexity."
The "Payback" as a Release
In the text you shared about The Big Anxiety and neurodiversity, there's a different kind of "payback" mentioned: the relief from "masking" or the exhaustion of trying to fit into a world not built for your brain.
For some, the "payback" isn't a punishment; it’s the end of a long, difficult performance. It’s the ultimate "taking off the mask."
TAGLINE
"Dust to Dust: The Universe Reclaiming Its Own."
Would you like to explore the "Threshold of Death" from a Big History perspective (how the universe itself will eventually "pay back" its energy), or shall we pivot back to the human side of neurodiversity?
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