Possibly Panspermatism

Cast:

Panspermatism-- belief in origin of life from extraterrestrial germs

Biology—the study of life

Astronomy—the study of celestial bodies

Possibly Panspermatism

Panspermatism was not usually an angry person. It was the army of “possibly” that attacked her every day that had begun to wear down her patience. She would go to see her uncle Biology, for instance, in the Galapagos Islands.

“Really, after all we know, I think the intricacies of life are still a mystery,” he would say, and Panspermatism would get excited, seeing her chance to impress her uncle, and then she would speak up.

“Probably, though, life begins when spores that are already in the universe create most life as we know it.”

“Possibly,” he would then say, and she would wince, “Why don’t you go ask your other uncle, Astronomy.”

If she did ask Astronomy, she would get a “possibly” or a “maybe” or “that’s interesting” or even “I won’t say you’re wrong, but…”

Like bees, they bumped against the sides of her head, convincing her that each dismissal brought her own opinion down less. She was slowly dying of possibility.