On fractals.
October 7, 2021
It’s a simple belief that our lives are ruled by chaos and probability. On this roller coaster we ride, we constantly face challenges where we feel powerless, out of control, or alone in the struggle. That it’s impossible to make sense of why bad things happen to good people.
The beauty of this world is that underlying all chaos, at the infinitesimal limits, we actually find order, form, and pattern. It comforts me that a shift in perspective can turn mountains into mole hills.
The primordial fern is one example of the order in chaos: a fractal pattern built into a whole from the infinite repetition of smaller parts.
A fractal is defined with these four properties:
1) Infinite Intricacy — nature is an expert at evading measurement and understanding, as are human beings. Those of us who dedicate our lives to understanding ourselves and others know that this pursuit is fruitless, yet still powerfully meaningful.
2) Zoom Symmetry — we so often lose sight of the forest by focusing on the trees. But we can learn much from studying the small pieces that build us into our wholes. Even in states of absolute disarray, we can find balance and symmetry by focusing on our fundamental building blocks.
3) Complexity from Simplicity — Life can be so overwhelming, seem so inextricable in it’s complexity. However all that is beautiful in this world comes from simple, elegant components — energy, force, matter. These pieces combinatorialize to create everything that is and will be.
4) Fractional Dimensions — Fractals are not one-, two-, or three-dimensional objects, but instead they exist in the liminal spaces between. We as humans do this too. We grow and we shrink. We move and we stop. We love and we hurt. We can not be contained to a single dimension because we contain multitudes.
This piece represents a moment of absolute chaos in my life. A redefinition of my values, my choices, and my actions.
I am overwhelmed. I am indecisive. I hurt the people I love, and I love the people who hurt me.
I remind myself that as an agent of chaos, I too contain the patterns of the universe, and this gives me immense peace as the storm rages on.