That's Life

Life is a result of geology and chemical processes. The conditions necessary to form life, from a resource and energy standpoint, were extant when the solar system formed. While no one can yet say how molecules began to self replicate, somehow the chemicals bonded that made this happen...that’s life.

Life is simply chemistry, put together with the same care as crystals, and it's "purpose" is to exploit as much of the energy available to self replicate. Therefore, it "evolves" into niches of energy availability. Each species specializes in obtaining and utilizing energy and thereby replicating new forms that can take advantage of the niche.

We think of life as having a beginning and an end, since individuals have a beginning and an end. In reality, life is a continuation of a process that is now billions of years old. Each individual life form comes about and consumes stuff and converts it into more soil and dies. However, the chemistry behind the individual is simply a continuation of the chemistry that preceded it. There is an unbroken line of chemistry of our DNA back to the first self replicating molecule.

So, while life itself had a beginning, any individual is the representation of the self replication molecules at a given point in time. Until that individual passes on its genes to offspring, it is the latest in the long line of self-replicating molecules that manifest themselves in the myriad of forms we observe.

An individual life form lasts but a short time. We are the most fragile of minerals, and wear out very quickly (from a geologic standpoint). But, like industrious ants, our accumulation of knowledge and ability to pass on that knowledge is chipping away at what we don't know...