One of the great ironies of
human diversity is that fact that for the most part, humans are less diverse as
a species than most other animals on the planet. In fact, if we compare ourselves to the other
8 million species that live on the land or beneath the seas, Homo sapiens –Latin
for “wise men”—have among the least amount of genetic variation.
For example, a 2012 Oxford
University study showed that groups of chimpanzees living in a relatively small
area of central Africa have more genetic diversity than human beings living on
different continents. Needless to say,
man’s best friend –the dog, or the cat for that matter—have a tremendous greater
amount of genetic diversity than humans.
Penguins have twice the genetic diversity as humans. Fruit flies have 10
times as much, and so on.
Sure, we humans look
remarkably different on the outside. Some are tall, some short. Some have blue
eyes, some brown. But these different traits
are minor from a genetic standpoint and, more importantly, they are discordant,
meaning they don’t match up. You cannot
tell a person’s eye color from their height and you cannot tell a person’s
blood type by their skin color. Perhaps
most importantly, you cannot tell a person’s IQ, athletic abilities, or future
leadership potential from any external physical characteristic because in fact
beneath the skin, we are all genetically similar.
As a heart surgeon, I have
had the privilege of knowing firsthand what lies beneath the skin. After 21 years in practice and nearly 6,000
operations, I can assure you that we are all the same on the inside. Your heart, your lungs, and your bones are
all indistinguishable from race to race, person to person, man or woman.
And yet, wars continue to be
fought, fences continue to be built, and children continue to die unnecessarily
in the name of race, creed, ethnicity, nationality, religion, and even sexual
orientation. How can this continue to happen? How is it that we continue to see only our superficial
differences and not our human similarities?
These visual differences that we see on the surface of our bodies tell
us nothing about what lies beneath the skin, nor what lies within our hearts or
in our souls.
I am in awe every time I step
into the operating room. To literally hold
a heart in your hand is an experience that is like no other. No matter how many operations I perform, I
will never cease to marvel at both the complexity and the efficiency of the human
heart. And, of course, even beyond the
splendor of its anatomy, the heart has always represented the very essence of
our thoughts –love and hate, strength and fear, passion and calm. These metaphors are perfect. Just as our
hearts are genetically similar, so are our human needs. We all just want to survive, love our
families, and live in peace.
Mother Teresa once said, “If
we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each
other.” It is undeniable that we belong to each other, not only from a
philosophical or spiritual standpoint, but also because of our very DNA.
I often wonder how different
things would be if everyone in the world could see into each other’s hearts as
I do each day in my profession. Imagine
if we no longer saw each other as different races or countries or religions…
just people, all the same on the inside.
If we all begin to see each other as one and the same, perhaps someday
we can all finally live together in peace.
“You may say I’m a dreamer,
but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you will join us. And the world will live as one.” –John Lennon
