I will give you a short answer to your question, "What is the meaning of life?":

We are creatures of nature, evolving slowly from the mud to our current state of blind, self-destructive, madness. It has taken untold billions of years to arrive at our present situation, where a hubristic for-profit race to develop technology faster than the human brain can accommodate it may prove our undoing as a species. But our hearts are still capable of responding with empathy and positive action, especially when we band together with our fellow humans to overcome the excesses of ignorance, greed and animosity that threaten our survival in these times.

There is no meaning in "life" except that which we invest in it. This is why we need to be vigilant in giving our lovely little planet and the creatures who live on it the best we have from day to day. Thus we create our own legacy and that of life itself, and the sky's the limit!

I am a lifetime believer in humanity, with no allegiances to anyone or anything other than reality as I see it. I do believe that everything we do or say has the power to "move the farthest star." Stay awake, stay connected and stay as true as you can to the ideals that have sprung from your experience. Above all, and I know this sounds facile, let love be your guide. When it comes right down to it, that's all we have that matters.

PS: And ... like Ron Reagan, continue to be "not afraid of burning in hell!" Every time I see him say that on his atheist message on TV, I'm reminded that a sense of humor is pretty basic to survival too.