Entropy: A measure of the disorder or randomness in a closed system.
One of the frustrations that came with raising two boys under 7 years old is the mess. They seemed to revel in it, even wallow in it. It seemed like a constant battle to keep things organized.
We had a number of outside toys for the boys. They had wagons filled with toy cars, various doodads and squirt guns, along with plasma cars, tricycles and other riding machines. Periodically we worked with the boys on organizing their outside toys. We had an area on our side porch for all the outside stuff. All the small things went into their wagons and the larger toys lined up neatly next to the wagons. After this is all done I liked to step back and watch our two agents of entropy. When the day is warm and the sun is shining our boys work quickly, especially the little one.
They usually started with the wagon. Our youngest used one of two techniques. The first technique consisted simply of rolling the wagon to the edge of the porch and tipping the contents of the wagon over the edge into the planter area, then rolling the wagon itself over the edge with a satisfying crash. The second technique was a bit more time consuming, yet yields great satisfaction in the fact that the contents of the wagon were spread over a wider area. I called this the toss method. Micah had become quite proficient in his throwing motion as a result. Our older boy simply rode every toy with wheels until he had tried them all, leaving them spread far and wide.
I still have some dim memories of my two years of Chemistry in college. I have forgotten much of what I learned back then, but the concept of entropy seems to have stuck. Simply put (I think?) a high entropy system is disorganized and random. Sounds like our yard after a sunny afternoon.
It takes effort to keep things organized. Things like the toys on our porch as well as things like our relationships with our spouse, children or our God will deteriorate if left to their own devices. We all know intuitively that any relationship takes work to maintain, even the best of them. In fact the best relationships are good because of the work put into them. When the two of you work together on keeping your relationship close the benefits are amazing. Love grows and so does contentment and joy. We have a God who is already working hard to have a relationship with us. Effort on our part is all it takes to make it happen. This is the opportunity of a lifetime, let’s not miss out on it.
"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me."
Revelation 3:20
God bless,
Rick Nelson
530-588-4730