In the course of human history, it often seems that chaos defines the world in which we live.

Random, haphazard events appear to transpire, running toward some undetermined end, like a stream making its way as it goes, pushed in this direction by a log and that direction by a twig.

I disagree.

Surrounding us are patterns, visible to the naked eye, embedded in our world.

The sun rises and sets. Every day.

This spring, the air will warm. This summer, it will be hot. It will cool off come fall. The winter will be cold. Then it will start over.

Canadian geese will fly in formation — an arrow in the sky.

Across the midnight sky will be

twinkling lights, mortared in their place, the same distance from each other as the previous night. They will be there tomorrow night.

This March, on a certain day, a thousand daffodils will open in unison.

There will be one solid color in the sky from horizon to horizon.

Wave after wave after wave will break and retreat back into the ocean.

All the raindrops together will fall in one direction.

This huge ball of dirt and rock will continue to turn on its axis as it continues to swing around the sun as the sun continues to swing through the Milky Way just as it did a thousand years ago.

Plaid shirts will be weaved, round bales will be lined up on trucks, songs with recurring themes will be composed, identical plates will be set on kitchen tables, men will use the handshake as a greeting, babies will be born, all with two eyes.

Patterns.

Seems to me there’s an unseen artist at work.

Rex Alphin is a farmer, businessman and contributing columnist for The Tidewater News. His email address is rexalphin@aol.com.