On being ... mission driven

By Ingrid Sapona

A couple years ago there was a piece on CBS Sunday Morning about owls and the Global Owl Project. The story highlighted the work different folks are doing to preserve owl habitats and talked about the significance different cultures have historically placed on the enigmatic species.   

The managing director of the Global Owl Project, David H. Johnson, apparently got interested in owls when an eastern screech owl landed on his tent. He was 11-years-old at the time. As Johnson sees it, he didn’t pick owls, they picked him.

While all the information about owls was interesting, it was something Johnson said about life that really stuck with me. He said,“There are two important days in your life: the day you’re born and the day you find out why. I’m here to help owls and the conservation of the planet and people I care about.” I was so struck by what Johnson said, I jotted it down because I knew it would be something I’d want to return to in an On being…

When I first heard Johnson’s comment, I admit to being jealous about the clarity he feels about his purpose on earth. Because the CBS piece wasn’t about Johnson’s life journey, it didn’t talk about how straight a path his life took from that owl landing on his tent to his work with the Global Owl Project. Curious, I looked him up. Based on what I found on Research Gate, it seems he’s been working on owl-related stuff since at least 1991. Looking at the list of research he’s been involved with, there’s no denying that he has been on that mission for most of his life.

The day I was born I’m sure about… (At least that’s what a birth certificate is for.) But, “the day you find out why” is a whole other matter. There have been moments in my life when I’ve felt like I helped with something or did something that mattered a bit. But those times are rather fleeting and I’d be hard pressed to provide even one example. 

The question of what my purpose on earth is hasn’t preoccupied me, but I have thought about it from time-to-time. In particular, I’ve wondered whether life is more fulfilling if you find a mission or specific purpose. Given that I’ve not figured out the “why I was born” thing, I guess I’m hoping that fulfillment doesn’t depend on figuring it out. Or maybe the key is in realizing that a meaningful mission doesn’t necessarily involve making the planet better (as Johnson’s does). 

In the two years since CBS aired that piece, I’ve made some personal progress in that I’m no longer jealous of people who have great clarity about their reason for being. I think it’s wonderful if you figure it out, but if you don’t, that doesn’t mean your life is one of quiet desperation, as Thoreau posited. Indeed, despite no mission, I feel content and fulfilled. I’m satisfied I’ve made the most of opportunities that have come my way (like being able to share my thoughts through On being…), that I help others as I’m able to, and that I do my best not to do harm to the planet. Though I may yet have an “owl on my tent” moment of clarity of purpose, I am fine if I don’t.

What about you? Do you feel your life has been mission-driven? If so, how and when did you figure it out? Did some owl-like omen happen in your life to guide your purpose? Or do you feel a mission isn’t necessary to give life meaning? 

©️2025 Ingrid Sapona