Living Every Moment

"Guard well your spare moments. They are like uncut diamonds. Discard them and their value will never be known. Improve them and they will become the brightest gems in a useful life.”

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

One of the greatest lessons in life I learned in 1978 from a Jesuit priest from Brazil named Castor Cartelle. It was the lesson of never wasting a moment in life. Each of us has 24 hours gifted to us each day to cherish and give back to the world the best that we have to offer.  Anything less is a loss to not only ourselves, but to the Universe.

It was my first year as a public high school teacher in Oak Hill, West Virginia. I was struggling to figure it all out and make a difference. Public speaking and patience were not a skill and attribute that came natural to me, so I made a lot of mistakes. Early in the year a kindly-looking gentleman walked into my classroom unexpectedly during a lecture on some topic of biology. Still being a new teacher I was nervous about anyone observing my methods with all my bad habits, so I was a bit uncomfortable when the tall visitor in the back of the room stayed for a couple more sections of instruction.

At the break for lunch he came forward and introduced himself. Quickly discerning that my visitor spoke no English, we parted after a handshake and smiles with my still not comprehending what he was all about. After school I learned from other members of the faculty that the gentleman was visiting his brother in town and wanted to learn a bit about American education, so he had dropped in on a number of classes to get a feel for our school. All well and good.

The next day he was back in my class in the morning and stayed all day. In fact, he joined my classes for nearly every day for the next 13 weeks. Of all the many classrooms in the school, he chose to spend his time exclusively in mine. In time I would come to find out how meaningful this was.

Once my Portuguese-speaking visitor and I figured out we both spoke enough French to communicate, I learned that Castor Cartelle was a Jesuit priest as well as a world-renowned professor of paleontology at the University of Brasilia in Brazil.  My French has never been great, but it was good enough to begin to help him grasp some words and ideas in English. In the 13 weeks that would follow he became quite conversant in English, and I learned far more than I could ever have imagined.

Each day I would cover topics of general science and found myself answering his questions and addressing his comments as a member of my classes. The students got used to him and got back to their usual antics once the good padre became a regular fixture. We all grew together. I suppose as a professor and a scientist he was more interested in my science instruction than other subjects, and as a priest I like to think he may have had some affinity for my own adventure and spiritual proclivities. For whatever reason he chose to join us, I was glad he became a part of my classes.

Jesuits, characteristically, waste no time. Every moment is an opportunity to experience and grow during this short life we have here. The little town I taught in held few opportunities for cultural exploration, so I imagine the school was the hot spot for discovery while visiting his brother for three months. Father Cartelle was originally from Spain before he settled in Brazil. He had made some famous discoveries in the jungles of South America, readily found on the Internet today. His great pleasure in life was playing pipe organs; he showed me many wonderful pictures of him playing these enormous organs in the great cathedrals of the world. Once his confidence and skills with English improved, we spent more and more time speaking of his travels to these cathedrals and his time doing research in the Amazon jungles.

Before the end of his stay, the padre's English was good enough that I invited him to give instruction in the classroom, tell my students about his adventures, and show slides of capturing giant constrictor snakes and the bones of ancient mammals of the Miocene Epoch that he uncovered in South America. In the end we exchanged addresses and ultimately lost touch.

I am delighted that my friend Castor is still with us, still busy lecturing, and sharing his discoveries and enthusiasm with the world. His lasting impact on me has been immeasurable. Even my daily recordings in this blog are an off-shoot of his shared passion for filling every moment with something productive that adds value to the world. In thinking back and recalling the time we shared in my classroom, I cannot but think that our meeting and time together was no accident. I have thanked this great spirit many times for choosing to be there at the right time in my life to help me grow.

Ho'oponopono

Whenever there is conflict in life with someone else, the solution ALWAYS lies in taking responsibility. From ancient times in Hawaii the indigenous islanders would resolve conflict through the practice of a system called ho'oponopono by reciting the four simple phrases above in a mantra.

The Hawaiian word “pono” is understood to be the absolute model of good behavior and societal values; The prefix “ho'o” is a causative – to do something or to make something happen. So together they mean to make right.

The mantra is powerful. Whether you are at fault or not, you can disentangle any situation of personal conflict by removing blame or attempting to provide some sort of justification. You just bring the other person to mind, repeat the words “I am sorry, please forgive me, I love you, thank you. The forces of Repentance, Forgiveness, Love, and Gratitude magically go to work for you – with amazing peace-restoring results. You can do it yourself, you don’t need anyone else to be there, and you don’t need anyone to hear you. Just say the words in your head. The power is in the feeling and in the willingness of the Universe to forgive and love.

Repentance - You are responsible for everything in your mind, even if it seems to be far removed. Once you realize this, it’s very natural to feel sorry. Choose something that you already know you’ve caused for yourself. Over-weight? Addicted to nicotine, alcohol or some other substance? Do you have anger issues? Health problems? Start there and say you’re sorry. Then say something like: “I realize that I am responsible for the (issue) in my life and I feel terrible remorse that something in my consciousness has caused this.”

Ask Forgiveness - Don’t worry about who you’re asking. Just ask! PLEASE FORGIVE ME. Say it over and over. Mean it. Remember why you are remorseful as you ask to be forgiven.

Love - Say I LOVE YOU. Say it to your body, say it to God. Say I LOVE YOU to someone you've hurt or someone who has hurt you. Say I LOVE YOU to the air you breathe, to the house that shelters you. Say I LOVE YOU to your challenges. Say it over and over. Mean it. Feel it. There is nothing as powerful as Love.

Gratitude - Say “THANK YOU” – again it doesn’t really matter who or what you’re thanking. Thank your body for all it does for you. Thank yourself for being the best you can be. Thank others in your life. Thank God. Thank the Universe. Thank whatever it is that just forgave you. Just keep saying THANK YOU.

We are All Magicians

When did communication stop being magical?

When did we stop understanding that we all have the ability to impact reality, and we should do so with intent?

Somewhere, somehow, the magic was taken away from us.

We were made to feel powerless and became followers.

The mundane trudge of the day-to-day wore us down and our childlike wonder of the world diminished.

We grew up. We disconnected.

Each of us is uniquely amazing.

When we communicate in any way we have influence, and if we have influence we can change the world.

We have the ability to impact reality through our words, body language, and even by our silence and inaction.

Each of us is more powerful than we imagine.

Mistakes

"Mistakes are perfectly okay, nothing is wrong in mistakes. Everybody makes them and everybody has to make them. Don’t ask for perfection. Mistakes are good. They keep you human. Otherwise you will either become inhuman or superhuman and both are not good. To be human is very beautiful but to remain human one has to err…

"If you have made a mistake there are two ways to treat it: one is to feel guilty. If you feel guilty, you will commit the same mistake again. Guilt is a way to help the mistake come back… You forget the mistake and you start focusing on the guilt. The mistake will be repeated again.

"The second alternative is the right alternative. When you commit a mistake, see why you committed it, how you committed it, how it goes on happening; go into the mechanism of it. Repeat it deliberately, see why it happens, go into the very process of it. And there is no need for any guilt. Be scientific about it, go into it: ‘Why do I commit this again and again?’ And I am not saying that you should not commit it; just find out why, how it happens, what is the mechanism, how it takes hold of you, how it rises from the unconscious. Just go and watch the whole process and joyously. There is no need to feel guilty at all, then you will never commit it again, because you have looked into it and you are finished with it.”

Osho: The Sun Behind the Sun, Behind the Sun

5 5 5

I see the number sequence 555 all the time – on the clock, certainly, but also on my car's odometer, on GPS, on my computer, and in other unexpected places. I was driving this summer to visit my friend Charlie, who lives on 555 Plutarch Road, and as I was nearing his address I casually glanced at the time on the car's clock to see that it read 5:55 pm. The synchronicity registered with me immediately. It has almost become habit for me to seek confirmation, so I immediately looked at my odometer gauge which indicated I had driven 55.5 miles since my last fuel fill-up and that the total mileage on my car read as 235,555.5 miles. That was a lot of fives all at the same time!!!

Synchronicity? Always a mysterious topic to ponder. With a full life of experience I do not find synchronicity to be either serendipitous or accidental. I believe there is always conscious intent behind remarkable things we cannot explain.

I've believed for some time that encountering sequential numbers is a sign from my angels, who I've been aware of and even know by name since my late 20's. My angels and I have communicated a lot over the years, so I think they throw these numbers at me more than at most folks because they know I pay attention and take it seriously. I have looked up all the New Age hippy-dippy meanings online and in books, but generally forget them right away. I thought I'd take a more reflective approach this time and record any meanings on this blog after being bombarded yesterday afternoon, without warning, by three separate sequences – 222, 444, 555. I guess my angels were really trying to get my attention. So now they have it.

Whenever you encounter a particular repeating number sequence again and again, there is a good chance it contains guidance from your angels or otherwise from the realms of spirit. Yes, have faith, we all have guardian spirits that love us very much and look after us at every moment. They are our pals and have our best interests at heart, always. Numbers are just one of many signs or signals our angels use to communicate their guidance and illustrate their presence in our lives.

The sequence 555 that I receive so often can mean any number of things, depending upon where any of us is in life, but the overriding meaning is that BIG CHANGES are in the air. Angels are encouraging you to stay positive, reminding you to know they are with you even though they are mostly out of sight, guiding you, and supporting you through whatever changes are happening in your life, or about to happen.

If you keep seeing 555, like I do, you’ve likely already started seeing changes unfolding around you, and it’s highly likely there are more to come. 555 is a sign that positive changes are bringing you into greater alignment with your soul purpose, and with greater love, vitality and abundance. The deeper meaning is that the changes include your stepping up to a higher level of light, a higher vibration, receiving new awareness and DNA activation to reach your highest potential, your highest truth, connecting with your Higher Self, reconnecting with your angels and the Divine.

555 is also about life choices, making choices for yourself that serve your path and eliminating those things that do not serve your higher purpose. 555 is a message that you may benefit from some energy clearance, clearing out some of the negativity from your life, or doing some past life house-cleaning, to support the changes that are already or about to unfold. The angels are showing you this number not to worry or frighten you about upcoming changes, but to help you become more aware so that you can keep your thoughts more positively aligned. Staying focused on your intentions, and maintaining a higher vibration will help the changes that are unfolding to do so in more positive, rewarding, and fulfilling ways.

When I witness angel numbers, I pay attention. I attempt to consider what I have just been thinking about or doing because this involves what the angels are trying to direct my attention to. Looking inward, I quiet my mind and open my heart, and ask the angels what it is they are trying to communicate with the sequence 555. When I quiet my mind and open my heart to a higher vibration, I know I approach a closer vibrational match with the angelic realm, so I'm better able to receive direct messages that correspond with these angel number sequences. Once the lines of communication open up, I keep asking my angels for guidance, direction, and support, and keep moving forward along my path one step at a time. And I don't forget to thank them. Gratitude for their love, guidance, support, and timely numeric reminders!!!

So, as a post script to writing this… after I finished editing this report, and walked away from my computer to the kitchen to make a late breakfast, as I set a pan on the stove burner my eyes caught the time on the stove clock: 11:11. Do you think the angels are smiling because of my attention to this topic???? I am happy to have such abiding loving companions!

A Woman's Smile

To be able to throw one's self away

for the sake of a moment,

to be able to sacrifice years

for a woman's smile -

THAT IS HAPPINESS.

hermann hesse

The Samurai Code

I was fortunate enough to have inherited a samurai sword from my father which I have in turn passed along to my son. My father acquired the sword during his service as a Marine during World War II in the south Pacific, fighting from island to island against the Japanese. With a bit of research I learned that this particular sword was issued to a cadet at the Japanese Naval Academy at Etajima in Hiroshima. When I would hold it's finely crafted forged steel in my hands, still razor sharp after nearly eighty years since its crafting, the magic of its tradition and history always left me with a wondrous sense of awe. Because I was able to handle the sword from the time I was a young boy, the Samurai and their ethical code of honor always intrigued me.

Bushido was the code of conduct for Japan's warrior classes from perhaps as early as the eighth century through modern times. The word "bushido" comes from the Japanese roots "bushi" meaning "warrior," and "do" meaning "path" or "way." It translates literally to "way of the warrior." Bushido was followed by Japan's samurai warriors and their precursors in feudal Japan, as well as much of central and east Asia. The principles of bushido emphasized honor, courage, skill in the martial arts, and loyalty to a warrior's master (daimyo) above all else. It is somewhat similar to the ideal of chivalry that knights followed in feudal Europe. There is just as much folklore that exemplifies bushido—such as the 47 Ronin of Japanese legend—as there is in European folklore about knights.

 

A more elaborate list of the virtues encoded in bushido includes frugality, righteousness, courage, benevolence, respect, sincerity, honor, loyalty, and self-control. The specific strictures of bushido varied over time and from place to place within Japan. 

Bushido was an ethical system, rather than a religious belief system. In fact, many samurais believed that they were excluded from any reward in the afterlife or in their next lives, according to the rules of Buddhism, because they were trained to fight and kill in this life. Nevertheless, their honor and loyalty had to sustain them, in the face of the knowledge that they would likely end up in the Buddhist version of hell after they died.

The ideal samurai warrior was supposed to be immune from the fear of death. Only the fear of dishonor and loyalty to his daimyo motivated the true samurai. If a samurai felt that he had lost his honor (or was about to lose it) according to the rules of bushido, he could regain his standing by committing a rather painful form of ritual suicide, called “seppuku”. While European feudal religious codes of conduct forbade suicide, in feudal Japan it was the ultimate act of bravery. A samurai who committed seppuku would not only regain his honor, he would actually gain prestige for his courage in facing death calmly. This became a cultural touchstone in Japan, so much so that women and children of the samurai class were also expected to face death calmly if they were caught up in a battle or siege.

After the samurai ruling class was abolished in the wake of the Meiji Restoration, Japan created a modern conscript army. One might think that bushido would fade away along with the samurai who had invented it. In fact, Japanese nationalists and war leaders continued to appeal to this cultural ideal throughout the early 20th century and World War II. Echoes of seppuku were strong in the suicide charges that Japanese troops made on various Pacific Islands, as well as in the kamikaze pilots who drove their aircraft into Allied battleships and bombed Hawaii to start off America's involvement in the war.

Today, bushido continues to resonate in modern Japanese culture. Its stress on courage, self-denial, and loyalty has proved particularly useful for corporations seeking to get the maximum amount of work out of their employees.

Adapted from the writings of Kallie Szczepanski

Comparing 2019 to 1929

Three Things You Didn’t Know About the Crash of 1929 by Simon Black

October 28, 1929 – 90 years ago – is known as ‘Black Monday’ in financial circles. The US stock market had peaked the previous month, on September 3, 1929, with the Dow Jones stock index reaching a record high of 381. But throughout September and October, nervous investors began pulling their money out of the market. And over a three day period in late October (including Black Monday), the market lost more than 30% of its value. Ninety years later, I thought it would be prudent to look at three key insights from that historic crash, starting with:

Stocks are more overvalued today than they were in 1929

Back in 1929, the price/earnings ratio of the average company trading on the New York Stock Exchange was about 15. In other words, investors were willing to pay $15 per share for every $1 of the average company’s profit. That’s not high at all. In fact, a Price/Earnings ratio of 15 is completely in line with historic averages. Coca Cola’s Price/Earnings ratio back in 1929 ranged between 15 and 18. Today it’s 30… meaning that investors today are willing to pay roughly twice as much for each dollar of Coke’s annual profit. Coca Cola is actually quite an interesting case study. If we just go back a few years to 2010, Coca Cola’s annual revenue was $35 billion. By 2018 the company’s annual revenue had fallen to less than $32 billion. In 2010, Coca Cola generated $5.06 in profit (earnings) per share. In 2018, just $1.50. And Coca Cola’s total equity, i.e. the ‘net worth’ of the business, was $31 billion in 2010. By 2018, equity had fallen to $19 billion. So over the past eight years, Coca Cola has lost nearly 40% of its equity, sales are down, and per-share earnings have fallen by 70%. Clearly the company is in far worse shape today than it was eight years ago. Yet Coke’s share price has nearly DOUBLED in that period. Crazy, right? It’s not just Coca Cola either; the Price/Earnings ratio of the typical company today is about 50% higher than historic averages. (This means that the stock market would have to drop by 50% for these ratios to return to historic norms.) It’s clear that investors are simply willing to pay much more for every dollar of a company’s earnings and assets than just about ever before, including even right before the crash of 1929.

Stocks fell by nearly 90% in 1929… and it took decades to recover.

The ‘crash’ wasn’t isolated to Black Monday. From the peak in September 1929, stocks ultimately fell nearly 90% over the next three years. The Dow bottomed out in 1932 at just 42 points. 42 is lower than where the Dow was trading in 1885… so the crash wiped out DECADES of growth. And it took until November 1954 for the Dow to finally surpass its high from 1929. If that were to happen today, it means the Dow would fall to just 2,700… a level it hasn’t seen since the early 1990s. And it wouldn’t return to today’s highs until the mid 2040s. Most people think this is completely preposterous. And to be fair, I think the government and central bank will do everything in their power to prevent a severe crash. The Federal Reserve has already announced that it will print another $60+ billion per month, which should be favorable for the stock market in the short term. But just because we can’t imagine something happening doesn’t mean it can’t happen. In fact it’s happening right now in Japan: Japan’s stock market peaked in late 1989 with its Nikkei index reaching nearly 39,000. Within a few years the Nikkei had lost half of its value and would ultimately fall by 80%. Even today, thirty years later, the Nikkei index is still 40% below its all-time high. There is no law that requires the stock market to go up. It can fall. And it can stay low for years… even decades.

Adjusted for inflation, stocks have returned just 1.7% per year since 1929.

It’s best to think long-term about any investment. Businesses take time to grow and expand, and patient investors who understand this tend to do well. But when thinking about the long-term, it’s imperative to consider the extraordinary effects of inflation. Every single year your money loses around 2% of its value. But over time those small bites of inflation fester into a major chunk of your investment gains. Consider that, even according to the federal government’s monkey math, the US dollar has lost 94% of its value since 1929. So even though the Dow is more than 70x higher than it was in mid-1929, when you consider the effects of inflation, stocks are only about 5x higher over the past 90 years. That works out to be an average annualized return of just 1.7%. Even over the past 20 years - if you go back to late 1999, the stock market has only returned about 2.2% per year when adjusted for inflation. Think about all the risks and wild market swings that investors have had to deal with over the past 20 years - all for a measly 2.2%. It’s interesting to note that, when adjusted for inflation, GOLD has outperformed stocks over the long run. When adjusted for inflation, gold has averaged a 1.8% return since 1929 (slightly higher than stocks), and a 6.7% return since 1999 – more than 3x as much as stocks. But unlike stocks, people who own gold haven’t had to put up with the same risks. No shady brokers. No Enron scandal. They earned 3x more than the stock market – with the added benefit of being able to hold their investment right in their own hands.

Home

a poem by Rebecca Eschenroeder

Home

Is it a place? A location?

Is it a feeling? A sensation?

Is it the exhale that automatically rises from the depth of your soul, the moment you arrive. . . wherever that is?

Is it the timeless and limitless knowing that you are exactly where you are supposed to be. . . now. . . and now. . . and now.

Now.

It is where we are. . . always.

It is what we are experiencing. . . constantly.

It is the relief; the comfort when we come back to the breath.

It is timeless; it is limitless; because it is all there is. . .

Now is Home. Home is Now.

Feelings

Feelings Lead Us to Our Heart's Calling by Zoe Quiney

I have known longing in my bones for places I’ve never been and people I’ve never met.

I have fallen in love with strangers, in the split second that our eyes met, as we passed each other by. 

I have felt my heart break into a million tiny shards, sent skyward, scattered by the wind of unspoken words, and I have stitched it softly back together, over and over again.

I have let passion bring me to my knees, its hungry fire burning and ravaging the forests of my heart. 

I have stared deep into the abyss of my own emptiness, and filled it with wine and scribbled notes, written in the ink of my soul.

I have let oceans cascade down my cheeks, cleansing and healing me with their warm, salty tidal waves of release. 

I have been lit up with an iridescence that has shone from every pore, and I’ve discovered dark, sacred corners of myself, piled high with old fears and wounds, like dusty bones.

I’ve danced all night with my shadows, and I’ve set the world on fire with the determination of my spirit. 

I’ve felt the collective suffering of every being that has ever lived, and I have known the silent peace found in the stillness of old forests.

I’ve held the world to my chest and cried for it; loved it, laughed with it, and felt lost within it, all at once.

I have felt the burning stab of rejection by not being seen or heard, and I have responded by expanding my heart to embrace the universe and all the stars. 

I have known infinite freedom, beyond fear, and I have wrestled wolves of self-doubt to the death.

I’ve danced all night with my shadows.

I have breathed in the world and all its innocent magic, with delicate tenderness. 

I have swum in seas of love, so deep and so wild that I nearly drowned.

No Day Passes Without my Heart Being Stretched

I feel everything. All the time. No day passes without my heart being stretched to its capacity for one reason or another.

It sounds exhausting, and it can be, but it’s all I’ve ever known. To me, feeling is the truest of my experiences because it is a physical expression of being alive. To be constantly pulsating with stimuli, vibrating at various frequencies, is to experience the proof of your own existence.

I believe that life is measured in our ability to feel; the deeper and the more raw the feelings, the more authentically we’re living. Tears will flow and hearts will break; sadness will swamp us and stomachs will knot; rages will burn and passion will overcome us. That is how we are built; maybe it is our body’s way of reminding us we are alive.

If Walt Whitman contains multitudes, then I contain infinite galaxies; supernovas and nebulae; dying stars and black holes. I contain the lives of all my ancestors; I am made of every person I’ve ever known and loved for millions of years since human hearts existed.

My mind is a wide ocean; moods rise and shrink away like tides with the cycle of the moon. My heart is a mysterious guide—dark, loud and full.

No day passes without my heart being stretched to its capacity.

Sometimes I cry when I pass someone on the street because of the sadness in their eyes. Sometimes I want to reach out and embrace every person who has ever felt the way I do, and give them a piece of me, so that they can feel less alone.

Feelings Can be Our Trusty Guides

Life is challenging, yet beautiful.

Blessed are those who have known love and conquered fear in equal measures; who have offered a piece of their soul to the world and had it accepted and rejected simultaneously. Or those who have stood at the foot of their own dreams and trembled at the sheer sight of them.

Feelings contain lessons. We learn how to decipher each one that arises in different parts of the body; by distinguishing the acidic sting in the gut from the yearning pang of the heart, the quick-as-lightning flashes of the mind from the slow and steady call of the soul.

Feelings can be our trusty guides, if we allow them to be. They whisper to us to follow them; they can lead us astray if we misunderstand them, but if we learn to translate them, they will lead us to our heart’s calling.

If doubted, they can deceive us, yet they have the power to help us find our passions and lead us to our purpose.

Blessed are those who have offered a piece of their soul to the world.

Feelings open us up to our darkness and our light; they expose us and shake us, they destroy us and make us, but ultimately they release us.

By shutting our hearts down, we deny ourselves the chance to experience life in all its messy glory; we halt our evolution by pretending that we are small and that we don’t care. When, really, we do care. We care a lot, but we’re so afraid of admitting it.

I’m not in search of sanctity, sacredness, purity; these things are found after this life, not in this life; but in this life I search to be completely human: to feel, to give, to take, to laugh, to get lost, to be found, to dance, to love and to lust, to be so human.

Get to Know Yourself from the Inside Out

When we resist our own depths, we let our life force wither and die inside of us; our creativity suffers, our relationships suffer, we wilt.

By opening our hearts wide and listening to their truth, we can, and will, set ourselves free. Our bodies are our greatest guides; they show us things we never knew about ourselves and about others. They explain important messages in ways we could never articulate with words.

The truth that sits in your gut in the form of intuition is the most powerful messenger you will ever know.

To feel so deeply and so often, means to get to know yourself from the inside out. How well do we really know ourselves? How much do we truly love ourselves? Feelings are what make life worth living.

Feelings are what make life worth living; what inspire us to keep seeking, keep moving and keep creating. They are what drive us to keep loving even when we lose everything. Feelings decorate our souls and birth our dreams.

These feelings accompany the humble wonders of nature and the power and comfort of finding kindred connections.

Deep Feelings are a Gift

These feelings are what we are made of, beneath this skin and bone; these feelings were first created inside stars and passed down to us through the bloodlines of ancient sages. They connect us to each other with the invisible threads of our shared experiences.

When we let ourselves feel unapologetically and share the experience, we allow others to have the courage to sink into their feelings in a more authentic way and express themselves without shame.

Deep feelings are a gift; they have the capacity to transform us if we follow their wisdom. Allow yourself to feel from your core, with your heart, and let yourself be moved.

The feelings we feel so often, are our connection to the divine, and ultimately to ourself. Let them wash over you like waves; let them heal you. Let them break you and build you.

Let them show you who you are and then let them set you free.

Mermaid's Wineglass

I remember back in graduate school being fascinated by a little plant by the name of Acetabularia. With its dainty up-to-two-inch long stem, topped by a broad sombrero-like cap, it is best known by its poetic nickname – Mermaid's Wineglass. What is most fascinating when you hold this common little green algae from the subtropical waters of the Caribbean and Mediterranean is that, with all of its delicate detail, it consists of just one single cell.

Just one cell. All this beauty. Because of its size it is a most excellent model organism for studying cell biology. Its nucleus always can be found at the rhizoid, the base of the stalk, and only divides once the plant has reached its full height. Nowhere else in nature can one look at the entire complex morphology of life within a single cell large enough to be visible without a microscope.

The caps of Acetabularia may also be exchanged, even from two different species. If a cap is removed, the nucleus sees to it that it is regenerated. In addition, if a piece of the stem is removed, with no access to the nucleus in the rhizoid, this isolated stem piece will also grow a new cap. It was a wonderful little plant to play around with in the lab to visually appreciate the miracle of nature, reminding one just how remarkable each cell of every living thing really is, with its unfathomable number of chemical and energetic processes occurring at every instant, right there in your hand. A good analogy would be a whole automobile made of just one single moving part, with all its various functions operating at the genetically programmed direction of a single nuclear robotic brain within. When you extrapolate the magic of this one cell by 30,000,000,000,000 times, you get the average human body. Even with this great number of cells, there are really only about two hundred different types of cells in our bodies, each with its own genetically programmed nuclear brain directing all the chemical and energetic processes that keep us alive moment to moment. Wow, talk about running on autopilot!