As I began my exodus into Oakland today (and I say exodus because it truly was) I made some startling observations. I was sitting on the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) train, and decided to observe the other passengers. What I saw can be summed up in a single word, sad.
As I looked around the train, I searched for a single smile, but found not one. Everyone was so absorbed in their own personal bubbles. Folks were reading newspapers, listening to music, texting, anything but engaging in human interaction. This behavior, or lack of behavior I should say, bewildered me. How can people who are in such close proximity, not even speak?
I began to think further about how humans interact with one another. We are all connected. We breathe the same air, drink the same water, exchange energy, and live on the same planet. We are all formed the same way, we all cry, we all experience joy. There is very little that separates us. Yet in this modern world, why do we find ourselves segregating ourselves? We fight religious wars; steal from one another, exercise control and power over those weaker than us. I began to think about how we can all transcend this current state of heterogeneousness.
If we open our eyes and realize that, to further our evolution as a species, we must come together to learn from one another and apply the knowledge gained. The benefits of lowering our weapons and opening our heart to one another are astronomical. Just think about what life would be like if we brought an end to senseless fighting, bigotry, and hatred. What would happen then? I assure you, it would be the next stage of human evolution. What purpose does all the negative emotions we harbor towards one another serve?
At this point I became distracted by the view from the window of the train. My eyes were drawn to the beautiful blue sky, and the burning bright sun. And I began to ponder what people thought about the Earth in which we live. Do they know how amazing it all is? How breathtaking? The way in which the Earth and the rest of the universe work together to sustain life is the symphony of the cosmos. Lately, every time I look up at the sun, I smile. For years, I would just look at it and say, yup that’s a star! Only until I learned how it works, did I have that nonchalant mentality. Let me give you a quick run down. The sun is a burning ball of gas and energy. Two atoms of hydrogen, colliding at a very fast velocity, combine to create a helium atom. The energy produced by this fusion is what we experience as heat and light. Granted the process is much more detailed than that, but for the sake of simplicity, that is how the sun works. How amazing is that? The photons emitted by the sun could quickly kill us, dehydrate our oceans, and destroy the Earth as we know it. Why doesn’t it? You can thank the planets electromagnetic field. See how harmonious it all is? That’s nature’s way of turning a frown upside down =). I suppose that’s all I had on my mind this morning as I was traveling to my exam. Which I did not pass, by the way. Oh well, there is always next time!
-James
