Cruise Ship Earth

We are born on this ship called Earth. This is one of many planets that colonize space as we know it, and it sails through the deep black ocean quiet and slow, as day turns to night, night to day, and things live and they die. That is the way. It never docks. We stand on the deck and watch with wonder the lights in the sky.

We live in the United States. This is one of the many countries that colonize Earth as it sails through space, quiet and slow, as day turns to night, night to day, and things live and they die. It is the aggregate of all the states within its boundaries. We are in some of the better rooms of the ship, and enjoy a comfortable life while other countries change our linen, serve us food, and provide entertainment. We can afford to indulge the many activites of the ship, but still, sometimes, at night, we watch the lights in the sky and wonder when we’ll die.

We live in Massachusetts. This is one of the many states that colonize our United States as it sails through space, quiet and slow, as day turns to night, night to day, and things live and they die. It is the aggregate of everything within our boundaries and Massachusetts has its own room onboard the ship. Everything is arranged just so: birth, friends, college, jobs, marriage, and kids. And in retirement, we sit on the porch, look at the lights in the sky and wonder why.

We are people. We are one of the many things that colonize this state as it sails through space, quiet and slow, as day turns to night, night to day, and things live and they die. Within our bodily boundaries, we are the aggregate of all the microbiota that reside on or within our human tissues and biofluids along with the corresponding anatomical sites in which they reside. Types of human microbiota include bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Microorganisms are unaware of lights, or the sky, or the lights in the sky.

We are the viruses. We are not human. You are my host as we sail through space, quiet and slow, as day turns to night, night to day, and things live and they die. We colonize your body in order to replicate. We viruses are, in the aggregate, the most abundant biological entity onboard this ship, and we have no boundaries. When we replicate inside you, you may live, or you may die. We don’t know the difference between night and day. We don’t look at the sky and wonder why. That is the way.