And now for something a little different Last night I was sitting on a plane reading a book that I'm somewhat interested in. I tuned in and out a couple of times, which is usually the point where I put the book down and go do something else. Except when I'm strapped to a chair and unable to do anything else. One of the last things I noticed was the word 'extinct', but I was zoned out to the extent that the context didn't register.
So I got to thinking about another book I read, on Darwinism, which pointed out that the concept of species is somewhat abstract and overly simplistic because in many cases there is no clear line that can be drawn to separate one group of organisms from all other living things. In certain circumstances, genetic diversity goes all the way down to the individual organism. I like that outlook. In essence, we are all a unique species to some extent.
The book I was reading on the plane was about a couple where the wife is diagnosed with cancer, and the husband is the narrator. The narrator putters about, woefully sad, painfully aware of his inability to alter the course of events, and reflective on all the good times they've had. This got me thinking as I occasionally do about my own happy marriage, and how it will some day come to its natural end. The happier the two of us are together, the less I can bear to think of what awaits us in a few decades. Dark stuff, I know. I apologize.
I think the concept of extinction fits really well here. When I reflect on the people close to me, it really does seem that each one is one-of-a-kind and irreplacable (not just a reflection on how low our readership has sunk). When one of them is taken away, which won't happen for a very long time, inshalah, it seems like a species really will have died out forever.  ¶ 9:59 PM