“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” —Albert Eistein
A circle is perhaps the perfect geometric structure there is.
Although some would claim the triangle or a square to be better structures because of their stable nature, the circle and all its derivatives — the orb, the sphere, the globe and every structure on earth and in the universe with a core, circumference and radii emanating from the core — can teach and even help us to understand much about nature, about ourselves and human life and its cycles and seasons, from the most profound to the most mundane levels.
From the micro to the macro levels, every creative urge on every level, in the intellectual and the physical realms, begins as a thought and if tenaciously pursued and fleshed out by one’s strength of will, proceeds from concept to completion as a circle.
Even in the mundane reality of living an ordinary life from day to day, circles and cycles mark the patterns of our lives, from sunrise to sunset. Note nature’s seasons and cycles of birth and death, of sleep and wakefulness, of ebb and flow, of the waxing and waning of the moon and of the quarter million year rotation of the solar system around the core of our home galaxy, the Milky Way and in the grandest of levels, the movement of a nearly infinite number of galaxies in the universe, the edge of which only the Creator knows.
On the minutest level, the astounding movement of electrons around a nucleus and the wondrous flow of the human bloodstream to and from the heart are cyclical.
As science has found out, blockages, either man-made or natural to the flow or movement in the processes existing in nature at all levels, can create anomalies, abnormalities and mutations, resulting in pain and illnesses in the human body and if uncorrected, result in diseases, debilitation and ultimately, death.
This presents a strong argument for regular exercise and consistent movement in our daily lives at any age. Movement pumps the blood flow in the neurons of our brain and in the capillaries in our extremities to and from the heart. The action in turn, strengthens the muscles of the heart and maintains blood pressure at healthy levels.
Nature moves in cycles. While the earth’s atmospheric cloak adheres to the surface because of the gravitational pull of the earth’s mass, the hydrologic cycle will continue to maintain our seas and give us rain to sustain all planetary life — that is, for the time being —unless something unforeseen and catastrophic, like a rogue asteroid with the earth’s name on it as its target, upsets and upends this delicate and rare homeostatic balance.
If and when that happens, as scientists theorized is the reason dinosaurs were wiped out 65 million years ago, it would be a complete cycle. It would be ADIOS to human life as we know it. Fortunately, such occurrences happen in geologic time, in millions of years.
The prophets of doom heralding climate change, backed by some pseudo scientists) include themes of global cooling or global warming (take your pick). For a number of years, they have been trying to scare the living daylights of present day earth inhabitants with stark doomsday scenarios.
Someone claimed with arrogant certainty a few years back that because of global warming the polar ice caps would be completely gone by now. The seas will rise and cities along the coast will be plunged in chaos.
Guess what? The ice caps are still there and the fairly recent occurrence of a polar vortex which brought one of the most severe and bitter winter seasons in memory belie such claims.
The fact remains there is no predicting the weather or for that matter, the end of the world with absolute certainty and infallibility. Climate is part of science that is still evolving. There is nothing settled about it. We can track its patterns and draw some educated guesses so we can prepare for catastrophic disturbances to mitigate destruction. The world is a sphere and there is still so much about our planet that needs to be discovered.
Who knows when the next Krakatoa or Vesuvius will erupt and spit out so much sulfur to envelop the world for years that temperatures drop significantly because sunlight is blocked. It has happened before with Mount Pinatubo and other volcanoes along the Ring of Fire through the centuries. The only thing certain is that volcanic eruptions will happen again. We just don’t know when.
Who knows when the Big One for California will happen? It is not a matter of if but when. That is a given. The last big one in San Francisco was over a hundred years ago and scientists say California is due for the next big one.
Who knows when the next Katrina will come and wreak havoc? Who knows the direct path tornadoes will take? All we know is that there are things that humans can predict with some degree of accuracy but on the whole, there are things that are random and beyond the realms of prediction.
One thing that is becoming clear is that nature has become part of a global political agenda. I consider such thought manipulations suspect. When nature is being used by groups to advance dubious political motives so that laws can be enacted that will essentially line the pockets of certain economic interests and thus ensure political power, it is time to tune out of the madness and see it for what it is. We need to maintain equilibrium in the face of untruths.
When it comes to nature, what will be, will be. Its cycles are dictated by something much more powerful than any human mind can conjure. Earth’s 23.5 degree tilt which dictates earth’s seasons as it spins like a wobbly top along its orbit around the sun, which in turn orbits the center of the Milky Way readjusts and is tweaked according to some cosmic cycle.
In a way, the life of our living, breathing planet is reflective of human life from birth to death. The human story is cyclical. Every civilization goes through periods of beginnings, progress, full flowering, decay, stagnation and ultimately, death. Planet earth will die too along with the sun, one day, the human race and all living carbon-based creatures will be gone by then.
As a historical footnote, there are clear indications the American story, as a result of its increasing divisiveness and seismic shifts in its values and national psyche, has has gone through a protracted period of decay and stagnation phase of its cycle. For three decades, America may have lost its way as it drifted away from its core Christian values made manifest through its decadent culture.
This may have played out already. By God’s grace and miracle for millions who bent down their knees and prayed fervently and asked for divine intervention, a new beginning is sprouting.
The promise of resurgence to new life and an era of hope and worthwhile accomplishments is dawning.
GOD’S BLESSINGS OF PEACE, HEALTH AND PROSPERITY BE WITH US ALL IN 2020 AND FAR INTO THE FUTURE!
HAPPY, NEW 2020 TO ONE AND ALL!!!
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Nota Bene: Monette Adeva Maglaya is SVP of Asian Journal Publications, Inc. To send comments, e-mail [email protected]
