Can you tie your shoes?
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The famous last words of many foolish people are, “Watch this!” Sometimes, we do things that might be impressive but certainly not very wise. Other times, we see people doing things that are truly astonishing.
Many years ago, back when the Dead Sea was just starting to get sick, and I actually had time to watch television, there was a segment on a late-night talk show called “Stupid Human Tricks.” It showcased some unusual people doing, well, unusual things. While not always being practical or very important, it was somewhat entertaining. On the other end of the spectrum are feats that are genuinely astounding. One of my favorites is something accomplished by 22-year-old Li Zhihao of China. He managed to solve 3 Rubik’s Cubes while juggling them in just 3 minutes and 16 seconds! And I can’t even juggle! |
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But what about doing things that are seemingly mundane? How about something like tying your shoes? If you are 4 years old and can accomplish such a task, you will impress adults with your slightly advanced abilities. However, if you are 34 years old and are bragging about such a task, that’s a bit odd, to say the least.
One day, while amid running errands, I pulled into the parking lot of a store and parked the car. Before I got out, my mind was spinning, thinking about all I had to do that day. After turning off the car, I reached to re-tie my right shoe and then ran into the store. I know, can you even believe that? You probably can’t wait to share that story with all your friends. Well, maybe just the ones you don’t want to be friends with anymore since it would probably work towards achieving that goal. 🤣 How can I turn that story into something interesting. Here’s my attempt. Because of how my mind works, I often think very deeply and technically about even the simplest of things. It just so happens I did that regarding the series of everyday events in my short, uninteresting story. While I was getting ready to exit the car, I realized that my shoe must be untied. But how did I know? I could not see my shoe. It was under the dash, by the accelerator. The looseness of the shoe was causing less pressure on the nerves in my foot. Therefore, the signals traveling all the way from my foot through my nervous system to my brain were different than normal. My foot was not intentionally sending a message regarding an untied shoe; it was just the result of different signals being generated than those coming from the nerves in my other foot. My brain had to receive these signals, associate them with the status of my right foot and translate them into whatever signals are associated with loose shoelaces. Obviously, my brain had to have a database of information related to feet, shoes, shoelaces, and what it considered too tight vs too loose, among countless other factors. I was not consciously thinking about my shoes at all. I had way too many other things on my mind. However, my brain and nervous system combined to conclude something needed to be done to rectify the situation. In turn, subconscious actions occurring in my brain sent appropriate signals through my nervous system to move my arms in such a way that both my hands ended up down by my right foot. Then, additional signals were sent to move my fingers in coordinated motion to find and properly grasp the shoelaces and take them through very specific, intricate movement patterns such that when completed, would result in the laces being tied to the intended and appropriate tension strength, all without me being able to see my shoe, or the laces, or even being aware of what I was doing. This process also involves my fingers sending feedback signals to my brain so that it can continually make corrective actions to successfully accomplish the subconsciously intended task! Are you worn out yet thinking about all of this? Are you second-guessing having any association with me, knowing how my mind works? I don’t go overboard with things like this too often, but every once in a while, I can’t help but think this way given my physics, engineering, and computer programming background. It’s actually a miracle I have any personality at all, or any sense of social skills! 🤣 I will spare you further details, but what I shared is just an oversimplified overview. I didn’t even begin to describe what has to go on at the cellular level. That’s actually where it really gets complicated! The human body is an amazing marvel. To think that it just “evolved” is pushing credulity to its extreme limit! We’re told (and are supposed to believe) that everything came from nothing and particles produced in the alleged Big Bang continued to interact over billions of years, eventually becoming aware of themselves, deciding to run errands, concluding their shoes need to be tied, and feeling compelled to write about it in a Question of the Month article. I don’t have enough blind faith to believe in that scenario. It makes much more sense that God is behind all of this, even in me torturing you with an article about tying shoes! So, the next time you tie your shoes, brag to everyone around you how amazing you are! Just don’t be surprised if they don’t make eye contact with you anymore! “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Psalm 139:14)
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