Entropy
- en·tro·py / n / 'en-trO-pE
the degradation of the matter and energy in
the universe to an ultimate state of inert
uniformity
One of my favorite paintings by artist Mary
Ford is "Entropy" (egg tempura, 14" x 18"). The
painting depicts a pristine still life, with
several pieces of fruit sitting on top of a book
entitled "Entropy." The rich scene is only marred
by a housefly crouching on a slice of fruit.
Entropy is the law of the universe. Anything
left undisturbed will eventually decay and scatter
into its component atoms, just as that piece of
fruit will, if left alone, quickly become infested
with maggots and shrivel into a wet, fuzzy mess.
Entropy is the reason we blink, the reason why
housework is necessary, the reason why the word
"maintenance" is in the English dictionary.
Interestingly, the French word "maintenant" means
"now"... perhaps because if you don't maintain it
now, entropy will take it later.
Sometimes, entropy moves fast, and does not wait
for inactivity. Today, I watched two mourning doves
spend all day building a nest inside the wheel well
of a truck, only to see the vehicle drive off at
the end of the day. I guess that's why they call
them birdbrains. Luckily, they hadn't had time to
lay any eggs yet.
Entropy metaphorically rules our lives as well.
If we don't maintain our relationships, stay
engaged in our work, keep active in society, we
stagnate. If we live a "still life," the fly on our
fruit will do what comes naturally. Before we
realize it, the rut becomes a chasm.
So next time you wash the windows or dust the
furniture, remember to keep up with the other
"housework" in your life.
Development note: I've
noticed that this site doesn't look like it should
in Netscape Navigator. Rather than waste time
jury-rigging it to look right in a
soon-to-be-obsolete browser, I'll just add the
cliché "This site best viewed with Internet
Explorer."
©2003 Michael
Strickland ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED
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