The Whole World Becomes That Much Richer

FOUR FROM HAVASUPAI PT.

Wagner: Entry of the Gods into Valhalla

You may not see it now,
said the Princess of Pure Reason,
looking knowingly
at Milo's puzzled face,
but whatever we learn
has a purpose
and whatever we do
affects everything
and everyone else,
if even in the tiniest way.
Why, when a housefly
flaps his wings,
a breeze goes round the world;
when a speck of dust
falls to the ground,
the entire planet
weighs a little more;
and when you stamp your foot,
the earth moves slightly
off its course.
Whenever you laugh, gladness spreads like the ripples in the pond;
and whenever you're sad, no one anywhere can be really happy.
And it's much the same thing with knowledge,
for whenever you learn something new,
the whole world becomes that much richer.
--Norton Juster
The Phantom Tollbooth