“Daddy, do you love me?”
“Of course I do sweetheart. Higher than the moon is high.”
“Daddy?”
“Yes, darling?”
“Why do you love me?”
“Well my little angel…I..I don’t really have a choice.
You see, my biology forces me to. My love is really a trick of evolution to make sure my genes survive.”
“What?”
“You see honey, we’re all slaves to the tiny genes inside our bodies; we’re all slaves to evolution. We do what our genes tell us to do, and we feel what they tell us to feel. And then evolution tricks us into thinking that these feelings are real.”
“So you don’t really love me?”
“That’s not what I mean.”
“So you mean that you don’t really love me, but your evolution genes make you think you do?”
“No of course not. I definitely want to love you, so I do what my genes tell me to do. I choose to follow my genes, and that choice makes my love real. Other people choose to go against their genes, and they don’t love their children.”
“But why do you want to love me?”
“Well…I mean…it’s a lot easier for evolution to happen when humans take care of and protect each other.”
“But why do you want to love me?”
“Because you’re my little angel, and you have half of my genes in you.”
“Ohhh. So your genes tell my genes that we need to stick together so they can keep going on and on.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“So your genes don’t care about us at all. They don’t care what happens to us. They only care about themselves.”
“Well they definitely care if we die, because then they die.”
“So we’re only like a car for them. And they trick us into doing things that keep us alive so we can drive them around?”
“I…I guess so.”
“So…ummm. I’m confused. Daddy?”
“Yes sweet-pea.”
“Your genes seem very mean. Why do you care what your genes say? They control you so much that you don’t even know you’re being controlled, and then they trick you to think you’re the one who’s in control. Your genes are terrible people.”
“Well…I mean…it sounds bad when you put it like that, but it’s…it’s actually really good because it helps all humans to survive. Someday you’ll pass on your genes to your children and get to experience it as well. The circle of life, you know.”
“But it is just like slavery. And we’re the slaves. And slavery is bad.”
“Oh honey, you’ll learn as you get older. It’s really not so bad. Our genes work like that because it’s the most efficient way of helping all of humanity to survive.”
“But I don’t care about all of humanity, I care about you. At least I thought I did but I guess it’s just my genes.”
“Sweetheart please don’t say that. You’ll understand when you’re older.”
“I bet God would care about me more than your stupid genes do.”
“You know we don’t use that word in our house, honey. Go put a quarter in the swear jar.”
“‘Stupid’ is not a swear!”
“That’s not the word I meant.”
Truth poorly defended loses not its truthfulness;
Falsehood aptly defended loses not its falsity.