Letters 26,27,28 | A Look Back, Fossils and Ruins (In Eng.) | Letters From a Father to His Daughter

Nehru pauses and reflects on what he has written so far-- the vast history of the Earth and human existence-- and he marvels at how life slowly evolved over millions of years. He reminds his daughter, Indira, of the enormity of time, explaining that human life is just a small blip in the long history of the planet. Nehru emphasizes how insignificant day-to-day worries seem when compared to the vastness of Earth's timeline.

He recounts the early history of the Earth, from its formation as part of the sun, to the emergence of life, and eventually the rise of humans. Nehru encourages Indira to think about how humans started as weak creatures but eventually grew to dominate the world. He ends by noting that while they’ve covered millions of years in their previous letters, the real growth of civilization happened in the last few thousand years, a period they will explore further.

Nehru advises his daughter to ponder what they've already discussed and suggests that this long view of history will help her put small problems into perspective.