Vines of my Father

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A short cartoon scenario about Life's Beginning

W. A. Barrett

San Jose, CA

With apologies to Barack Obama, in whose mouth I have shamelessly inserted little lessons.

This was inspired by the Obama-McCain "debate" at the Saddleback Megachurch, pastor Rick Warren, in Texas, on Sunday 8/17/2008, and a question posed by pastor Warren to the candidates.

Cast: Baracki Obama, school pupil, age 13, dressed in a plain shirt and shorts, no socks, worn loafers.

Johnnie McCain, school pupil, age18, in a tee shirt labeled "Keep America Strong", military-style trousers, black shoes.

Rick Warren, school teacher, age 40

Set: Texas schoolroom of a private religious school. Big cross on wall in front. State and federal flags on display. Usual schoolroom desks, a few books. Window to one side, with sky, clouds, etc. visible. Large green vine growing along the windowframe.

Rick: Now, class, it's time for our biology lesson. Johnnie, please rise and tell us, "When does life begin?"

Johnnie: [rising smartly, almost with a salute] At conception!

Rick: Very good, Johnnie. You may sit down. Baracki, are you paying attention?

Baracki: Huh? Oh, yeah, sure. Uh, what was the question?

Rick: If you would pay more attention instead of staring out the window, you would know the question. Please rise and tell us, "When does life begin?"

Baracki: [obviously thinking about it, scratching head, staring out the window at the vine, then back at the teacher. Finally, rises] I don't really know, I'm sorry.

Rick: What do you mean, you don't know? You obviously aren't paying attention. Johnnie, tell him, please. Now pay attention.

Johnnie: At conception.

Baracki: Oh.

Rick: Now, do you understand?

Baracki: Well, yes and no. I guess so. [pause] No, I don't understand.

Rick: What don't you understand?

Baracki: Umm. I've been studying that vine outside the window.

Rick: The vine.

Baracki: Yeah, the vine. My father once pointed out to me that a vine doesn't use seeds. It just seems to grow and grow. You cut off a piece somewhere, leave it on the ground, and that piece takes root and starts growing again. Pretty soon, you've got more vine. Trim it anywhere, and it just keeps growing. There's no seed, you see?

Rick: Well, yes, that's true. A vine doesn't require a seed.

Baracki: But that's just my point. When did life begin for that vine? It seems to me that there was no beginning and there will never be an end, as long as there's some sort of vine around to plant and keep growing.

Rick: Um. Yes. I see your point. But I'm not interested in vines. I want to know when does human life begin?

Baracki: Oh, human life. Sorry. I didn't get that. Let's see, human life. A baby? No, that's not it. My mom said that her baby came from an egg growing inside her. But then Mom's body produced that egg somehow, so it must be Mom. But Mom was a baby once, wasn't she? You see? [Rick shakes head] Could I draw a picture on the blackboard?

Rick: Sure, go ahead.

Baracki: [draws a big circle on the blackboard. Puts an arrow on it, showing that it's going clockwise]. Here's a circle. I can't figure out where it begins. Does it begin at the top, or the right side, or the left side? I don't know.

Rick: Well, a circle doesn't have a beginning or end. It's just a circle. But what does that circle have to do with what we're talking about?

Baracki: Excuse me, sir. I'm getting to that. Let me draw a baby near the top. [draws a baby face above the circle]. So the baby grows up, see, and becomes my Mom, or some other woman. [Sketches a stick woman on the right side]. Mom produces eggs, inside her. [Draws a cell-like egg near the bottom]. One of the eggs grows into a tiny baby inside her. [Draws a little foetus on the left side]. The baby gets born, and you have another baby.

Rick: Very interesting. So what's your answer to my question, When does human life begin?

Baracki: That's just it. I can't tell. Where does it begin on that circle? Where does the circle begin?

Rick: Well, the Bible says life begins at birth. That should be good enough for you.

Baracki: Where in the Bible is that? I don't remember reading that.

Rick: Umm, well, I'm sure it says that somewhere. I'll look it up and get back to you.

Baracki: But what about my circle? [looks at circle again] Oh, and it just occurred to me. It can't really be a circle, can it?

Rick: What? Why not?

Baracki: Well, my circle shows my Mom producing an egg, which becomes a baby, which grows up to be my Mom again. That can't be right. One of Mom's eggs became me, I guess, and my sister grew out of another egg.

Rick: You are starting to become very fresh, young man. You watch your mouth.

Baracki: Yes, sir. But I want to make my point. I don't think it's a circle. It's more like a spiral. [Erases the circle, draws something like a big bed spring spiralling from the upper left to the lower right].

Rick: A spiral?

Baracki: Yes, sir. A spiral. It's like a bed spring. It sort of goes around in circles like this, but also moves forward out of the board. That looks better to me. You still have babies on top, except they are different babies. Like I was here when I was a baby, Mom was there, Grandma was there, my sister belongs here, and if she has a baby, it'll go there. [Draws various babies along the top parts of the spiral]. And then, those grownup women go along the right side, like there and there. Their eggs go along the bottom, and the little babies inside go along the left side, like there. Isn't that more like it?

Rick: Yes, I guess so. Very interesting. But what does that have to do with my question?

Baracki: Don't you see, sir? There's no beginning or ending to that either. If you go back in time, you get all these ancestors along the spiral of life, back as far as you can trace. Going forward in time, it looks like life keeps moving along there, too. And, if you go around the circle, there's no obvious place where it all began.

Rick: Yes, yes. But life had to begin at some point. The Bible says...

Baracki: I know, I know, the Bible says it started with Adam and Eve, but it doesn't say just when. Also, sir, that isn't what you asked for, is it? You asked, When DOES life begin? You didn't ask When DID life begin? I think those are two different questions, entirely.

Rick: Oh yes, sorry, of course. I did ask When DOES life begin?

Baracki: [studies his spiral some more] Now, I'm even more confused. That spiral really isn't right, either.

Rick: Why not?

Baracki: Well, here I am, and I have a sister. So my mother had two babies, not one. My grandmother had three babies. If I ever marry, I'd like to have a son and a daughter. So each of these women on my picture will probably have more than one child.

Rick: So?

Baracki: So, my picture of life isn't really a spiral. It more like a tangle of bedsprings. Instead of one circle loop spinning across time, you maybe have two, three, four or more, breaking apart and spreading out. You can get a split like that on each turn of the circle. So the picture of human life looks more like this. [Erases the spiral and draws a tree structure of little spirals starting at the upper left, and expanding out into a tree of spirals toward the rest of the board].

That's how we got so many people on earth. Each couple did their thing to make two or three more children, the kids would grow up, marry off, and produce more kids. Of course, people die, so each little spiral has to stop, but more spirals can come out of it first. I guess you could say that's where life ends. But that doesn't help me figure out where life begins.

Rick: I still don't see your point.

Baracki: Oh, but here's my point. We are back to the vine again. That's how a vine grows, don't you see? The vine doesn't seem to have a beginning or an end – it just sort of keeps growing and expanding. Snip off part of it, like some whole family dies in an accident, and other families seem to grow instead and keep making people. Where does life begin in all that? I don't know. Do you, sir?

[Baracki's crude drawing on the board morphs into a green vine, which continues to grow and snake around, eventually merging with the one outside the window. He is left gazing at it through the window. Rick is left with a quizzical look on his face, muttering some Bible passages that aren't quite audible.]

Moral: There are simple questions about life. There are seldom simple answers.

Who do you want to see in the Oval Office next?