The atoms in our bodies are billions and billions of years old. Scientists claim they were created at the beginning of the universe or later by nuclear fusion in the center of stars.
How these atoms got here, and where they are going, is beyond my imagination.
The concept of an atom was first proposed by the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius, in his epic poem “On the Nature of Things,” written over two-thousand years ago.
Our life is a brief moment in an atom’s long journey.
How does one explain this to a child?
I decided to take a crack at it in this week’s post.
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The Story of Atom
Sometimes what you read in books is make-believe. This is not one of those times.
Everything in this story is true.
It is a story about music, dancing, and the magical world of a child named Atom.
Atom is very very tiny, in fact too tiny to see.
Atom loves two things more than anything else.
Atom loves to listen to music and dance!
Atom dances whenever music is playing, and in Atom’s world, music is always playing.
Whenever Atom dances, other kids join in.
Atom’s friends love to hold hands, jiggle, and spin.
You may be wondering what kind of music Atom listens to?
The answer is, nobody knows! Atom’s world is so small no one can see it or hear it.
Even though we can’t hear Atom’s music, Atom’s friends listen to it, and it makes them jiggle and dance.
In Atom’s world, the children never sleep; they jiggle and dance all day and all night.
When Atom’s friends dance, they join hands making special shapes.
Sometimes they dance in the shape of a triangle.
Other times they dance in the shape of a square or a circle.
Atom’s friends are so small that when they dance, all we see is a triangle, a square, or a circle.
Whenever you see a shape, you can be sure that Atom’s tiny friends are dancing.
There is one thing I forgot to tell you.
All the children in Atom’s world are magic!
When Atom’s friends join hands and dance, they can make any shape in the whole world!
Sometimes, they dance in the shape of a lion.
Other times they dance in the shape of a dog or a cat.
Sometimes they even dance in the shape of a person, like you and me!
Atom’s friends can change their dance into millions and gillions of different shapes.
Sometimes they change their dance from a triangle to a square.
Other times they change their dance from a lion to a mouse.
When Atom’s friends change their dance, one shape disappears, and another shape appears.
Atom’s friends love new dances.
That is why the world has so many different shapes.
Now, I must tell you a very important secret!
If someone you love disappears, don’t worry.
Atom and all the little dancing children are still here.
They just decided to try a new dance.
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You should turn that into an illustrated children’s book. Really!
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Thanks Barb. That would be fun!
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Exactly what I thought !
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Cute story. Just need an illustrator. Don’t bother contacting me. The only one with that talent in our family is Emily.
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Exactly what I thought
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