You could put together and take apart gears and dials, but might never know what a watch is or does. It is the same with the universe—the narrow window of interpretive consciousness is only aware of one thing at a time and totally in the dark about the glue that binds it all together. Seeking a true understanding of a clock—or of the universe—is like reading the previous passage on flying a kite: it requires something more than the individual parts.
