Is the Truth Out There?

My husband gave me one of his looks when I mentioned that it was World UFO Day today and that I was going to blog about it. You see, we have had many, many interesting discussions on the subject.

Yes, I am a believer. Of course there are UFOs. I've seen hundreds of objects flying around that I couldn't identify - which would make them unidentified flying objects, UFO's for short. Oh, you want to know if I believe in flying saucers... yep, sure do. I've seen one or two of them too. In fact the saucer that went flying across my kitchen 25+ years ago in a fit of my exasperation over my ex-husband quitting yet another job resulted in my having to deal with being one saucer short in my kitchenware set for years!

Seriously, I do believe in extraterrestrials and that there have been mysterious other worldly vehicles invading our space probably since the dawn of recorded history. I grew up during the period of time that Project Blue Book was in full swing, couldn't wait for the next of Professor J. Allen Hynek's books to come out, and have probably watched every UFO documentary that's ever been shown on TV, as well as every "close encounter" movie that's ever been made. I've read a number of books on the subject, from pure absurd conjecture by some pretty wacky people to more authoritative works by scientists, theologians, and researchers in the field.(By the way, the photo at the beginning of this article is a photo of Pleiades, a star cluster in the constellation of Taurus which some people believe may be our original "home.")

Considering the immensity of the universe and what little we know about the way it works, I honestly feel that all bets are off when it comes to saying we're all alone on this little piece of interplanetary real estate that we call Earth. It just doesn't seem realistic that the entire universe is here for the sole purpose of giving us something to look at when the sun goes down.

There's a couple of points that people who don't necessarily believe or those who need proof of EVERYTHING - oh, hi honey - (my hubby will start laughing when he reads this part!) always want to dispute! One is why on earth (pun intended) any lifeform that could travel to anywhere in the universe that they wanted to - would want to come here. The other is the argument that, based on what we know about space and time, there is no conceivable way that the journey could be made in a reasonable amount of time. So... my thoughts on those two arguments...

Why would they want to come here? Why not? We're curious as a species... why would we assume they wouldn't be? We've spent thousands of years learning about ourselves and our world - and within the past 60 or so years, we've begun to venture beyond our own planet, to explore the vast reaches of our solar system, our galaxy and yes, our universe. Assuming that we are a relatively "young" species of sentient life, I can only imagine why a much older species might find interest in us... although, I do have another theory. Hold on to your hat!

Pretty much everyone knows the story of creationism and is familiar with Darwin's theory of evolution, right? What I consider a possibility allows for both to be true, to a degree.

Creationism says that mankind came to be on this planet as the result of God creating man in His own image and giving him the Garden of Eden as a starting point to go forth and multiply. Science has pretty much proven that this wasn't exactly the case, given the evidence of evolutionary findings, but what if it was partially true? In no way am I arguing the existence of a Supreme Being, because I feel that there is something out there that is greater than all of us - I'm just wondering if part of His/Her/Its plan was actually played out through another one of His/Her/Its creations. Could we conceivably have been "transplanted" here by a dying race from some other galaxy? Or perhaps are we the result of a science experiment of sorts in "seeding" other planets?

Darwinism indicates that man descended from the ape... but scientists have never been able to find the "missing link" between man and monkey. The possibility that we were transplanted here to inhabit an already developed world would also explain why. Perhaps there just isn't a link. Perhaps it was known that a planet that could sustain apes could also sustain mankind and that was why this planet was chosen.

The stuff that scifi movies are made of? Maybe... but then much of what was science fiction back in the 1800's when Jules Verne was writing From the Earth to the Moon and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea became reality less than a century later. I grew up with the Jetsons cartoons - for those of you who are familiar with that show - think of how many of those incredibly futuristic (at the time) gadgets have become a reality today. If we are perhaps the star children of another race, transplanted here to keep the genes alive, wouldn't it make sense that we might still be being observed? After all, we observe our "experiments" and tag our endangered species to keep track of their movements - again, why is it absurd to consider the possibility that another species might want to observe us?

The second argument is that of time and space. When Newton developed his laws of motion and Einstein developed his laws of relativity, both of these brilliant men were limited by the age in which they lived...and the methods available to prove their theories. In the same way, we are limited by what we have been taught to believe are the "laws" of physics and the acceptance by the scientific community of anything that they would not consider madness. I, on the other hand, like to think of the "laws" of physics as the "suggestions" of science.

I can remember learning as a child that the smallest thing in the universe was the atom...even tho by the time I learned that tidbit of information, mankind had been toying with nuclear fission for nearly 20 years, and the existence of protons and neutrons was accepted knowledge in the field of physics. To this day, if you ask most people what the smallest thing in the universe is, they'll still say an atom. But science has disclosed that atoms are made up of electrons collected around a nucleus - and that the nucleus is made of protons and neutrons - and that the protons are made of up of fundamental particles called quarks. Makes you wonder what the quarks are made of. My point is that we are limited by our current knowledge.

Current day theoretical physicists like Stephen Hawking and Michio Kaku have devoted a good part of their careers into expanding on our current knowledge of physics, space and time. Terms like wormhole, string theory, and multiverse are finding themselves at the center of research and debate. Is it possible that we are now just beginning to explore the possibilities of travel thru space and even time that other species have had at their disposal for eons? Is the idea of folding space to hop from one galaxy to the next in the blink of an eye completely ridiculous - even insane? Perhaps as ridiculous or insane as people thought Jules Verne was to believe that we could travel to the moon. Or maybe it's even more ridiculous to believe that perhaps we are being assisted in discovering these things by the very beings that observe us - that are not limited by their knowledge like we are.

UFOs?? ET's?? Yeah, I'm open to the possibility... but then, I'm one of those people who believes that pretty much anything is possible... if your mind is open to exploring those possibilities! Do I believe the truth is out there? I will leave it at believing there is much to be disclosed and I think that, based on most people's abilities to handle what could conceivably be the truth, that maybe we're just not ready to know. Is the possibility of ETs in conflict with our concept of God? I don't see why it should take anything away from the concept of God creating the universe - it merely means that his creative ability was not as limited as we would like to believe it to be. Of course, if there is extraterrestrial life, I would hope that they would be more along the lines of the aliens in Cocoon, The Abyss, Contact, or even the silly aliens from Men in Black - as opposed to those who came to conquer in Independence Day or War of the Worlds. Chances are pretty good tho, just like there are nice and not-so-nice earthlings, we can probably expect the same from interplanetary travelers as well!

Still wondering why my husband gave me that "look" this morning when I mentioned blogging about World UFO Day? Whatever you believe, I hope you've found my article interesting and thought-provoking (and not entirely crazy - I really don't want to lose any followers...lol). I'd love to hear your comments, thoughts and opinions on the whole issue as well! I'd also love to say a special "live long and prosper" as a thank you to these great Etsy shops whose wonderful items grace my article!

The Pleiades Nebula - celestialwonders (amazing photos taken through a telescope!)
AWESOME ALIEN - WayFarOut (Far out, funky and fun items with an out-of-this-world theme!)
Shayla, Adopt an Alien, OOAK Creature Toy with Birth Certificate -AdoptanAlien (probably the only shop on the planet where you can adopt an adorable alien of your very own!)
Hangin' Out There 16x20 Fantasy Graphic Print - ArtByResolution (Amazing computer generated art in a variety of fantasy and surreal themes!)
The Littlest Centurion Robot with Laser Trident Wood Figure Sculpture -buildersstudio (one of my favorite shops - amazing collection of unique and fun items in a variety of themes!)
Tsa Zen Hacker. Acrylic Original Painting for Battle Lords Game - SusanVanCamp (incredible artwork including Battle Lords Game originals and some adorable doggies among other things!)
Night Encounter - EdsArt (One of the best in original SciFi Pop art on Etsy!)