The relevance of the Higgs field for our journey on the cosmic timeline comes from a related but distinct consideration—at some point in the future the value of the Higgs field may change. And much as the drag experienced by a Wiffle ball would change if the density of air it encountered was different, the masses of the fundamental particles would change if the value of the Higgs field they encountered was different. For all but the most minuscule of shifts, such a change would almost certainly destroy reality as we know it.
