It is the fixed that horrifies us, the fixed that assails us with the tremendous force of it's mindlessness. . .The fixed is the world without fire - dead flint, dead tinder, and nowhere a spark. It is motion without direction, force without power, the aimless procession of caterpillars round the rim of a vase, and I hate it because at any moment I myself might step to that charmed and glistening thread.

Annie Dillard