Whatever our ultimate tasks may be, our immediate problem is three-fold:  (1) To make the earth the fittest possible living place for all of its inhabitants; (2) to organize human society in the way best calculated to achieve that objective; and (3) to make every reasonable effort to prepare ourselves to play a meaningful part in this cosmic drama to which we have been assigned.

Item (1) is the theme of this chapter, item (2) is the theme of Chapter 17.  Item (3) is the theme of Chapter 18.

Passing beyond civilization we will attempt to conserve, share, beautify and if possible to improve our earth.

Our first task is to make the earth the fittest possible place for ALL of its inhabitants.  In a way that is a simple assignment, but its implementation will take us into every nook and corner of the land, water, air, radiational field, and every other aspect of the planet, including the weather.

When we say ALL forms and phases of life we mean all.  All microscopic life, all lichens and mosses, all vegetation on land, in the water, in the air.  All insects, all birds, all fish, all quadrupeds.  All two legged animals.  All centipedes and all those in between.

All forms of life have been assigned to our earth for a purpose, or have made a place for themselves in the vast scheme of things or are clinging parasitically to life after their assignments have been fulfilled or as their usefulness is drawing to a close.

In a broad sense, that which lives on the earth, including mankind, has a right or an opportunity to be here, living to the utmost of its always limited capacity.  How limited?  Limited by the similar rights of all other forms and aspects of life.  In a word life on the earth—­each life and all life—­is a shared opportunity.

Doubtless there are planners, regulators and arbitrators whose task it is to decide, at any particular moment, who shall survive and who shall perish.  Actually we humans perform a part of that function every time we thin out a forest, weed a garden, select our seed or teach a class.  At one stage of life we are the judges, at another stage we are the judged, performing multiple tasks that must be fulfilled during each moment of each day and each year.

In our Island Universe this earth is small.  But in each backyard, on each acre or square mile of earth, decisions may be made or are being made that determine survival, utility, order, beauty.  The results of those decisions appear constantly in the life all about us.

We have all been in homes where neatness, usefulness and good taste abound.  We have been in villages and towns where the same conditions prevailed.  On the other hand, we have been in situations that can be described only by the words littered, disorderly, chaotic.  We have also seen neat orderly homes in disorderly, slovenly neighborhoods.  Much depends upon who makes the decisions and whether the plans that are carried into effect promote or obstruct the ultimate purpose.