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The Variety of Snowflakes

It’s tough when shovelling mounds of snow, to think about it as individual, beautiful six-sided crystals. The claim that no two snowflakes are alike is probably true.

Considering that the total mass of snowflakes that has ever fallen throughout history is certainly more than 50 times the weight of the earth, it would seem likely that many snowflakes should be the same. But each snowflake contains more water molecules than you can imagine – about ten followed by eighteen zeros. This incredibly large number of molecules can be arranged in a huge number of ways.

Each snowflake grows as it follows its distinct path to the ground. This provides innumerable opportunities for water molecules to attach in different places. It turns out that the number of possible arrangements is much greater than the total number of flakes that has ever fallen.

The basic hexagonal shape of the snowflake is determined most of all by the “V” shape of the water molecule itself – two little hydrogen atoms attached to a big oxygen, like ears on Mickey Mouse’s head. As the crystal grows more V-shaped, water molecules are added to its edges.

So next time you shovel snow, think about the myriads of individual, symmetrical gems - flakes, whose shape is determined by their unique history.

Original pieces of art are worth much more than prints which are produced in the thousands. Identical, mass-produced copies are certainly easier and cheaper to make than one-of-a-kind originals whether we’re talking art or automobiles.

In nature, we find countless billions of individuals - each one like all the others in important ways, but distinct from all others in equally important ways. Snowflakes are a classic example. Each snowflake is an original because there are more water molecules in each one than the total number of snowflakes that have ever fallen. Human beings are another example. Each one of the billions of persons who have appeared on this planet is a unique individual. Even identical twins, who share genetic material, are still quite distinct. Different abilities, preferences, and personalities are obvious to those who know them.

Talk about a self-esteem builder! You are one of a population of six billion or so, yet there is no one just like you.

God values originals. The enormous potential for variety which resides in each of us staggers the mind. Each couple has the theoretical potential to produce millions of different children. Even the most prolific couples typically have less than 12 children who survive infancy (though there are exceptions). Most couples in Western societies have between 1 and 6 children. When compared to the millions of possible egg/sperm combinations which could become a child, the ones who are actually born are special indeed. Each one of us can claim to be one in a million!

Another amazing fact is that God knows all of his human creatures by name. Furthermore He wants us all to have a personal father/child relationship with Him. As it stands, we are all separated from God. His moral excellence cannot allow us into His presence in our present sinful state. Yet, because God loves us, He made provision to take care of the evil which keeps us from Him. By paying the penalty of death Himself, He opens the way for us to know Him and relate to Him as children to a loving father.

When the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, "Abba, Father!" Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Galatians 4:4-7

David Humphreys and Ron Hughes
© August 2004