The Fulness

It was supposed to be the dream family vacation to Hawai’i. I had enough frequent flier miles to get the six of us to the islands and got up at 4am on the specific day to make sure we had the flights we wanted. I spent a lot of time acquiring lodging on three different islands and arranging transportation and the connecting flights for our ten day odyssey.

The first stop was a beautiful little beach front cottage on the north shore of the island of Oahu. We arrived after dark on the first day and the constant roar of the ocean could be heard behind the cottage.

The next morning the kids were ecstatic to discover the miles of fine sand beach and the roaring surf. We discovered that we were about 200 yards south of the famed Banzai Pipeline where there was a surfing championship scheduled for the next few days.

Our first activity was to acquire a couple of boogie boards about 4 feet long which the kids used to surf back to the beach from a safe distance. Being the adventurous type, I decided to try my hand on the boogie board and proceeded out into the surf.

Between our cottage and the Pipeline area was a line of volcanic rock that was placed out into the ocean as a surf break and also delineated the private beach area from the public area to the north. Also of note was the little patch of rock about 30 yards from the surf break. As I left the shore I struck out further south of these potential obstacles.

Being the naive Midwesterner, I decided to go a little further than the kids had ventured and before I realized it, I was out close to the area where the surfers congregated and much to my consternation was moving with the current north towards the surf break. One of the surfers asked if I needed help and I politely declined figuring I could fight my way back in.

As I was trying to work my way back, I was caught by a larger than expected wave and began my quick journey back to the beach. I wondrously managed to survive the first wave and found myself pushed onto the small rock feature I described earlier. Before I could get my wits and launch off the rock, a second wave pounded me into the rocks and then tossed me back into the shallow water leading to the beach. I struggled to bring myself back to the sand and discovered a long skin wound from the middle of my calf to just below my left knee. As I tried to stand, I found my left leg could not support me and my two sons helped me back to the cottage.

As I lay on the couch in pain, I saw the first dark bruises begin to appear around my knee. Upon seeing this, my dear wife called the local hospital and was told to bring me in for an examination the next morning.

Here I was, less than 24 hours into the vacation of our lives and found myself wracked with pain and confined to the couch. Needless to say, it was a downer for the entire clan.

The next morning, the doctor immediately ordered X-rays of my knee and was soon showing me images of the damage. I had the top third of my tibia broken off and separated from the rest of the bone with a fair amount of crushed bone fragments along the top and front of the break. He told me that this was a serious break and would need surgery to repair the damage. He added to the dismal news by telling me that the crushed fragments would likely lead to a life of pain and early arthritis in that joint.

We worked out a change in our return reservations for me and my oldest son who volunteered to accompany back home. I will not get into the details but, for those of you who have made the 8+ hour flight back from the islands should try it with a 40 pound temporary leg cast crammed under a coach seat. I didn’t think my sanity would survive the trip but somehow, we managed to make it back home.

As I pondered my fate, my first call was to my home teacher, Gordon, who came over and gave me a priesthood blessing. His words gave me some comfort at the time and I carried a prayer in my heart that I would be able to work through this and that my family would be protected in my absence.

My son drove me to my appointment with my orthopedist the next day and I entered the clinic with some level of dread. I have never had surgery before and didn’t want to start now. With a new set of X-rays came heartening news. The doctor said the bones had come back together in good fashion and that I would need only to wear a cast for 5 weeks. He did caution me that, due to the injury, my left knee would be susceptible to pain and potential complications. I gladly accepted my fate.

Back at work, on crutches, I put the following caption on the whiteboard in my office: My family went to Hawai’i and all I got was this X-ray…

So, why share this with you now nearly 15 years after the event? I learned some things from this event and was prompted to share them with you.

First, I was an idiot for putting myself in harm’s way by going too far out into the ocean ill prepared for the elements. I was even a larger idiot for turning away help from someone who could see the danger I was in when I could not. How many times does our pride lead us to incur more pain than is necessary? I can say to this day that if I had simply said “Yes, I need some help. I don’t know how to get back to shore,” I would be much better off. I have carried with me to this day the clear understanding that we are not a lesser person if we accept help from others. Especially those who have a better view of the difficulties we may be in.

Second, the reason this event was brought to mind as I was going down the stairs in my home is the memory of the doctor’s warning of my possible problems in the future. Yes, I do have a bad knee, but it is not the knee I injured in Hawai’i. After all these years, my knee that sustained a significant injury, the knee that appeared in need of surgery, the knee that had been crushed is, today, my good knee.

I attribute my good fortune to the priesthood blessing I received that evening over a decade ago. A blessing of faith given to me that not only restored my knee to working condition but, somehow, elevated its performance above the other knee these years later.

I have been blessed with several miracles in my life that help me to remember on whom I rely for my very breath and well being.

I believe we are presented opportunities to learn lessons in this life. These opportunities are often repeated until we learn the intended lesson.This is one lesson I hope never to repeat.

What think ye?

I am going to diverge from my usual discussion items relating to doctrines in this post. I want to spend some time rehearsing some of my thoughts on genetics and the human soul. I have a son who is finishing his PhD in Molecular Biology at Berkeley. I have been ‘forced’ to educate myself on the topic so as to be conversant with him on his research and studies.

First, please understand that I am by training a computer engineer so this relieves me of any claim of expertise in my presentation on the topic. Here is some base information on the topic. The human genome is made up of 3.2 billion base pairs. These base pairs are made up of four different sugar and phosphate-based molecules which have been identified as adenine (A), thymine (T), cytosine (C) and guanine (G). As you may know, DNA is represented by a twisted ladder with pairs of these ‘chemicals’ loosely mated together by nitrogen based compounds where adenine and thymine (A-T pair) and cytosine and guanine (C-G pair) form the steps. So, you have the 3.2 billion rung ladder that represents the set of instructions that are used to guide the operation of our bodies. These base pairs are grouped together by function into genes of which there are about 30,000 in humans. These genes are grouped into chromosomes. All living things use this same template of base pairs and genes. The number of base pairs range from about 1.8 million in the influenza bacteria to 100 million in plants to 2.6 billion in mice and up to our 3.2 billion pairs.

Every cell in our body (with the exception of sperm and eggs) contains the complete DNA string described above. Every cell also only ‘activates’ a small portion of its genetic information in the production of proteins which are necessary for the purpose of that particular cell. In the normal operation of a cell, the nucleus or center of the cell manufactures a particular protein that is then transported to the edge of the cell where it is used for some purpose. So, a liver cell has the same base information as a skin cell but they operate completely differently with selected gene being activated in each circumstance.

Hopefully that is enough background for what I would like to discuss. For those interested in this topic, I would highly recommend the book Genome by Matt Ridley.

One aspect of this topic that amazes me is how incredibly complex the process is to get us to a functioning human being. What begins as a single cell, the union of sperm and egg, results in a uber-complex body with each subsystem working off the same ‘template.’ As this original single cell begins to divide, it is only a few days before these cells are called upon to begin to specialize. The mass of cells, which were originally identical, now are called upon to form every organ, bone and muscle found in our bodies. How does one cell know what it is to do? Right now there are only theories on how a cell at one end of the mass of cells is guided to start forming the head and its components while another at the other end works of the feet and toes. How do these cells ‘communicate?’ At this time, I have only found theories that suggest the original mass of cells differentiate based on the presence of electrical or chemical markers that vary by the position in the cell mass. I find these theories woefully inadequate in explaining how my fingers and finger nails formed at the end of my arms rather than on the top of my head ;-].

The other amazing aspect of ‘life’ is commonly referred to as ‘instinct.’ Those innate abilities that we are born with that seem to be hard-wired into our brains. One example is that kittens separated from their mother before their eyes are opened will attempt to cover their fecal matter. Is there some ‘universal’ cat etiquette that is carried into the next generation?

One of my favorite examples of instinct is the cuckoo bird. There are species of cuckoo bird that do not build nests but simply lay their eggs in the nests of other birds. The cuckoo egg is ‘programmed’ to hatch before the eggs of the host nest and the young cuckoo chick pushes the other eggs out of the nest. Having removed the competition, the young cuckoo bird now is nurtured by the host. The thrush, in this picture from Wikipedia, continues to feed what is an obvious (to us) intruder. I think that the positive aspect here is that there are no bounds to the love of a parent. Looking at the size of the nest, you can get some perspective on how ‘out of context’ this situation is.

So… how does the young cuckoo bird know to push the other eggs out of the nest? It had no clues from its parents or the environment to trigger this behavior. How is this invasive species able to continue this behavior over generations?

These are only a couple examples of instinctive behavior among living beings. How does a human baby begin life with the innate ability to suckle from the breast of their mother? How does a sea turtle deposited as an egg in the sand of the beach inherently know to move toward the ocean when it emerges from the egg? How does a spider know how to create a web even though they are separated from any examples?

These are all questions related to how species-related information is transferred to offspring. Through the miracle that is the development of a living organism; basic skills are, somehow, implanted in the brain. In many cases, these implanted skills, or instincts, are necessary for survival.

So, this brings me to the crux of the matter. How can a sequence of sugars and phosphates linked by nitrogen-based chemicals govern the incredibly complex process in the development of a living entity? How can this sequence of chemicals develop into a cognitive being with certain skills imbedded in their brain?

As I peruse the available scientific literature, I find references to this information contained in what is currently called ‘junk DNA;’ segments of our genetic material that has no apparent purpose. There are other theories regarding how this information is carried in the DNA structure but none seem to satisfy the programmer in me. We share with other mammals between 70 and 90% of our genetic material. The unique material is what differentiates us physically from the mice and birds and whales in the world. I find it implausible that the same code used to build the physical body could also contain the programming.

In my mind, the argument is the same as saying a computer parts list when assembled correctly will automatically contain the operating system. As an engineer, I know that I can easily assemble a computer if I have all the physical elements needed. I also know that the computer will not be viable until an operating system is installed. The operating system is the set of instructions needed to make use of the physical components.

Our brain and the associated body are not viable without the equivalent operating system software. In my opinion, the ‘instincts’ we are born with partially represent the fundamental equivalent to this operating system. This is where I need to inject the spiritual aspect of this discussion. I hold that we, as souls or living beings, are a combination of spirit and body.  I believe the spirit which is embedded in the physical body at some point when the cells begin to differentiate carries with it the basic information needed to act in the ‘role’ defined.

It is easy for me to believe that all living things are a combination of physical and spiritual entities. The spirit of the yet to be born bird, or spider, or for that matter, any other living thing brings with it the necessary instincts and basic operating system to function in the context of its existence. We begin with this basic instinct to build our knowledge. I believe that this basic toolkit with which we are born gives us not only the basic tools but also the intrinsic uniqueness that every living thing enjoys.

As I contemplate the incredible complexity of my own body and as I have watched the process wherein new life is brought about, I find it much easier to believe in a creative God than in evolution’s process of trial and error .

From Genesis, chapter one, we read:

20  And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
21  And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
22  And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.

The miracle of life is a testimony to me of the existence of this unseen world. There are clues all around us, if we but pay attention.

What think ye?