All that you touch you change
and all that you change,
changes you. 
Octavia Butler

I’m inspired by the mesmerizing effects of the integration of science and spirituality that is revealing so many truths. This post may require a small micro dose of indulgence and patience to connect the dots. Observe whether what I wrote is altered by your interpretation. 
 
In quantum physics and quantum mechanics, there’s this phenomenon called the observer effect. One of the most fascinating things is that by observing the thing, you change the thing. So seeing something changes the observer and changes what is seen through the interaction of the molecules. and atoms, and the energy.

There is a whole long, interesting set of debates and studies that proves the observer impacts the thing observed, specifically when it relates to particles and waves. Things become waves or particles depending on the observer. Just hang with me for a minute. Suspend your doubts and then do your own research.

Through our very presence, not just our watchful eye or the fact that we’re staring at someone, but our observation of something, the heat and/or energy we’re transmitting impacts the room and the place in ways that are imperceptible to us.

Our presence changes the energy structure. The presence of a camera, the presence of a device, changes the dynamics of the molecules too. You following me? At the quantum level the tiniest changes make a difference.  Things are dynamic and interconnected.

Now link that thought, to the concept of the butterfly effect. In 1963 an MIT professor named Edward Lorenz coined this phrase after discovering that super small changes to his weather prediction model had substantial consequences. While his modeling did not revolutionize weather forecasting, his observation caused quite a stir. Originally the claim was that the flapping of a seagull’s wing could be the cause of tornadoes somewhere else. The switch to a butterfly was seen as more poetic and it was. While the debate ensues, this work is now part of Chaos Theory. The idea of trying to make sense of complex unpredictable systems.

But the point here is that extremely small things are impacted by what we do and impact what happens. Most of it unintentionally or unknowingly, unwittingly we move through space and time and do things. We do bad things we do good things. We do things with intentions and we have do things without any. We are keenly attentive and yet we ignore so many details. It all has an impact, far beyond what we can imagine.

When we observe things, it goes into our computer minds. We censor we judge, we experience, we imagine, —1000s and 1000s of transactions occur simultaneously in the blink of an eye. Those thoughts turn into words, possibly emotions and then perhaps into actions. We create memories and relive these things again and again. We breathe differently. Our breath changes with our emotions. Our emotions change with our breath. Each of these things has unintended and intended consequences. Make us feel good or bad. And we go into the next moment with those feelings and the dominoes fall.

Our actions as subtle as a butterfly or the cacophony of a giant flock of seagulls activating the theory of chaos that brings gifts and grief down the road.

Now make one final link to another effect. Observer to Butterfly to Overview.
  
A writer named Frank White who interviewed the astronauts who saw the earth for the first time floating in outer space ceated the phrase the overview effect. It is the experience of seeing firsthand the reality of the vulnerable blue marble orbiting in the infinite void.  Many astronauts reported lifelong changes to the way they viewed the world and themselves. It blew their minds.

Imagine if we can get to a place to see ourselves for the first time. To bask in the wonder, the vulnerability, the beauty of what we truly are. To understand our true self.

So what we see, what we look at and what we think about has a ripple effect that actually changes the things around us. And changes us. So just imagine as you are taking the opportunity to see yourself and then to align what you see with what you do. And realizing what you are seeing and doing, is actually changing things, triggering other changes.  

When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe. – John Muir

The point is that everything we do, including what we look at matters. What we ingest matters. What we say matters. They all have consequences intended and unintended far beyond our environs. We can believe that these effects are real or we can close our eyes and cover our ears about the cascading consequences of our actions. Yet we know in our hearts that everything is connected to everything in ways we will never comprehend or appreciate. But we should learn and understand that what we see, what we do can change the world and change us.

We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change.As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. This is the divine mystery supreme. A wonderful thing it is and the source of our happiness. We need not wait to see what others do. – Mahatma Gandhi (he never said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.”)

What does all of this mean?
Who you are, what you do, matters.
Being good and doing good right now is more important than the ultimate results.
And the energy of your good deeds will be infinite.

Thanks for reading. John