Mud may not sound like much _ wet dirt after all _ but it is often a sign of civilization. Muddy fields are more common than muddy forests; muddy roads have churned across landscapes for millennia.
But it is in building things that various types of mud are most useful. Mud on thatch, mud huts, and, of course even today, bricks. Without mud a lot of the humans in the world would be without shelter.
Mud can be slimy and smelly and dangerous. It can be slippery and soothing and delightful. Especially for kids.
Sculptors form it into statues and other shapes, either to stand on their own or as models for sculptures constructed of other materials. And we still use plates and tiles and high-tech ceramics.
Today it is often hard to contemplate origins. We are too busy and rushed. How many times do we consider the cow when we sit in a leather sofa? How much time can we waste wondering how our cereal bowl was made? And bricks are just stones somehow magically shaped into standard sizes. Mud _ugh _ get the mop.
Possibly there are too many marvels demanding our time. The simple things are lost in the shuffle. Just possibly, that is too bad.
HuntingtonHarborThoughts 