Everything is Changing

Everything is Changing

While a group of friends sat discussing the day's events, Steve said everything was changing. He then noted that today, like in the nineteenth century Darwin's Theory of Evolution still applied. The full name of the theory is "theory of evolution by natural selection." The idea explains how organisms change or evolve. Darwin stated that human babies are born helpless, and it was thought humans descended from other young creatures who could survive without help. He concluded that the ancestors must be fish since fish hatch from eggs and immediately begin living independently. All life starts in the sea.

Steve stated that the chocolate tree has an exciting series of symbiotic relationships; this provides a complex example of mutualism in the tropical rainforest. The chocolate tree produces tiny buds that die and rot, which are ideal homes for the midges that it needs to pollinate its flowers. Once the flowers pollinate, they grow into large, brightly-colored seed pods. The seed pods have delicious, fleshy pulp and bitter seeds. Monkeys and squirrels are attracted to the chocolate; they eat the pods but spit out the bitter seeds in another symbiotic relationship. The chocolate tree relies on this relationship to scatter its seeds so more chocolate trees can grow.

A more complex three-way arrangement is the infestation of chocolate trees with mealy bugs. The bugs don't harm the chocolate tree, but the tree doesn't receive any direct benefit either. The mealy bugs are raised and taken care of by black ants that eat the waste honeydew the mealy bugs produce. In their symbiotic relationship, the black ants keep other insects away from the mealy bugs and, as a side benefit, keep away other insects that could harm the chocolate tree.

The chocolate tree has one more symbiotic relationship down by its roots. A fungus grows on the roots and receives its nourishment from the tree. The chocolate tree then absorbs nutrients from the soil more effectively due to the presence of the fungus. Symbiotic relationships are not limited to rainforests; even humans have symbiotic relationships with domesticated animals and plants. In the rainforest, there are more such interactions and very complex ones because there are so many species in a small space.

Darwin's work with orchids provided evidence supporting his theory of evolution through natural selection. The key to orchid pollination was the touch of an insect's proboscis, which releases spring-loaded pollen. No less than animals, plants are sensitive creatures possessing behaviors that permit them to respond to their environment, including elements such as sunlight, touch, and gravity. Plants track the movement of the sun, capture and digest insects, and respond to the "touch from a child's hair."

Steve found it interesting that the theory has thrived and was used to combat infectious diseases. When people in China came down with SARS, and the disease spread to other countries, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, received samples of tissues. Using a technology known as a DMA microarray, within 24 hours, researchers had identified the virus. Evolution was necessary because the genetic material had evolved from the same ancestor virus.

Evolutionary medicine helps us understand why we get sick. Illnesses such as the flu are constantly evolving influenza, from viruses that infect birds and mammals. Occasionally, a mutation in the virus' genome makes another virus capable of infecting humans, and the change allows the virus to move from animals to humans.

Steve's next topic was Industry. They use natural selection to make new molecules with specific functions. Chemists keep using the technique until they have the perfect molecule. These new enzymes convert cornstalks and agricultural waste into ethanol., which helps to reduce carbon admissions.

They were also amazed but not surprised that survival of the fittest even applies to computer programs. People develop computer programs that randomly change in small ways. The different versions compete for access to the computer's memory, and the more effective one works. Nasa used digital evolution. They needed an antenna for a spacecraft that count, not design. They used digital development, and they arrived at a very effective method.

Steve concluded that we are now making decisions that will have profound consequences for future generations. We must balance the need to preserve the Earth's plants, animals, and the natural environment against other pressing concerns. Do we need to change our use of fossil fuels and other natural resources to enhance the well-being of our descendants? Should we use our new understanding of biology on a molecular level to alter the characteristics of living things?

So, the group knows that everything is constantly changing. Good things don't last forever; bad things don't last forever. Everything has its season, and time and time continually moves forward. We observe changes around us: The seasons, birth, life, and death; changes in our bodies; changes in our family and friends; in our community; in plants and animals; the weather; the urban or rural landscape. Evolution might be natural, or it might be due to human activity. It might be slow and gradual; or sudden and without warning – a cyclone, a flood, a bushfire, an earthquake, a tsunami. Other changes may be slow or even imperceptible. We don't notice the grass growing, the glacier flowing, or the climate changing.

Life may be short or long, but it is not permanent. We need to accept our mortality. Life is uncertain; life is precarious. Part of being at peace is understanding and acknowledging this.

We will need to be aware of and able to adjust to change – to be ADAPTABLE and RESILIENT, to let go and keep moving through life. We may need to allow inevitable natural processes to take place.

We can choose how we react to challenging events. We can develop an attitude of flowing with life's changes rather than constantly resisting or trying to control everything. We need to be fearless of change. We can expect change and be prepared to accept and adapt to it when necessary. We can still enjoy experiencing the short-lived or temporary, but we must not lose sight of its impermanence. We appreciate what we have while we have it.

Our state of mind is also constantly changing. It can change like the weather. Sometimes it is positive; sometimes, it is negative. We need to remember this when things seem wrong – our state of mind will not last, and although difficulties are inevitable in life, they, or our perception of them, will often be only temporary.

Through the changes, there is the CONTINUITY of our being. By becoming aware of this, we can feel at ease and in harmony with nature and the universe. Our true nature continues, so our potential for true happiness remains intact within us, and qualities such as strength and resilience will be there when we call on them. Life will constantly be changing, but we always have the opportunity to be fully alive in the present moment.

So we can base our lives on the constancy and stability of our true nature and avoid being caught up with what is changing and unstable. When relating to others, we can seek to see their unchanging true nature and not just their changing ego personality.

What also doesn't change is that a good and happy life will always require wisdom, love – in the form of goodwill and compassion – and strength – in the form of patience and courage.

Everything Constantly Changes | WISDOM PARENTING. https://www.wisdomparenting.org/wisdom/everything-is-constantly-changing/