the three little stem cell embryos

Once upon a time, there lived three little stem cell embryos. They lived quite happily in their underdeveloped existence, they'd laugh and swim and wave to one another through the jars. At night when the men in lab coats left the area, the stem cells would hop out of their confines and play with one another. They'd dash and dittle and twirl around in glee, hopping from petri dish to petri dish, seeing what they could see. Yet-to-be-life was great, but the big bad soul was lurking around.

One day, the wisest stem cell sat attempting to contemplate his own existance when he was interrupted by his brother. "Brother cell, brother cell, who is to save us from the big bad soul?" "Not now" said the wiser, "I've almost got it". "Almost got what?" replied brother cell. "I almost thought, and therefore was" claimed the wiser. "But we have bigger matters at hand than living" remarked brother cell, "if the big bad soul comes, we're gonna be dead!" This was true, and the wise cell was forced to acknowledge the pressing matters at hand. If to survive, they were to fortify.

All three stem cell embryos set out to find enclosures to keep the big bad soul at bay. The dumbest embryo of them all sought refuge in a zip-lock plastic bag. Brother embryo attempted to preserve his existance by settling in an airtight jar. The wisest embryo however, was bold and unafraid. Upon the shelves sat an array of scientific encyclopedias. The wiser took one off the shelf and perused through the pages. His brothers watched him in bewilderment, frightened by his vulnerability in the open. "Hey brother without a name!" they called, "seek shelter before it's too late!" Their request went unmet and they sat in amazement as their eldest brother hopped up on a page - and there he sat, with a smug smile on his face.

The big bad soul entered the room. It went took to the cabinets and immediately dished out the essence of what it was on unsuspecting cells. It didn't take very long before its gaze set on a sealed zip-lock bag, with a helpless cell shivering in fright. "Tangible existance?" boomed the soul. "You're trying to stop me with tangible existance?" The soul laughed an sinister laugh and penetrated the bag, dispersing the essence of its very being on the helpless little cell. It didn't take very long before the soul set its gaze on a sealed plastic jar with yet another shivering embryo. "Tangibility once again! How silly for you to think that your simple enclosure of atomic function will stop big, bad, me!" Once again, the embryo cell was imbued with the essence of a soul.

The big bad soul was delighted at his accomplishments and set our to find another lab, when his gaze was caught by a smiling embryo sitting on an encyclopedia. "Who are you that dares to face me face to face?" bellowed the soul. "I am, well let us not go there... The question is, who are you?" "Why I am the big bad soul" replied the big bad soul, "nobody can escape my permeance". The wiser stem cell laughed. "I'll cut you a deal" replied the cell. "Ya see the spine on this book? It has the letter "S" on it. Ya see where I'm sitting? I'm sitting on your name. Read your own passage, and if it says anywhere that you exist beyond a reasonable doubt, I'll let you have me".

The big bad soul quickly agreed, for certainly he must exist. He read through the passages, but nowhere did he find an affirmation for his own existance. "This can't be right!! I think therefore I... I think therefore I aaaa-, I think therefore...." Suddenly the soul writhed in pain, as if its very essence was peeled away by some unseen force of collective knowledge and reality. As quickly as the big bad soul came, the big bad soul left - dissapearing in a puff of logic.

The wisest stem cell embryo sat relieved. He felt he should mourn his brothers but there was nothing to mourn to begin with, so he stuffed his face in the encyclopedia, and got back to thinki....