House of Light

The human spine is often referred to as a column. Ideally, its appearance from back to front will form a straight line. From an architectural and orthopedic perspective, this linear appearance represents an efficient and balanced relationship to gravity, allowing the head to be stabilized over the foundation of the spine, which is the center of the sacrum.

Viewed from the side, however, the spine has curves. These curves are initially formed in early life as babies learn to crawl and then stand upright. The young spine is maximally responsive to new patterns as it navigates weight-bearing movement in a gravitational world. In mature spines, chiropractic x-ray analysis can measure the angles between the skull and the upper neck and the lower spine with the pelvis. These angles characterize adaptive capacity and structural integrity in the axial skeleton.

All of that being said, I would like to clarify that the spine is not actually a column. I recently climbed the Cape May lighthouse at the southern tip of New Jersey. I carried Violet 194 of the 199 cast iron stairs to the top, spiraling up and down through a pillar of red brick. A lighthouse is a column. It is eminently stable. It is designed to stand tall - indefinitely - and to only stand tall. By contrast, how would you tie a shoe if the 24 movable segments of your spine were organized as a rod? How would a high jumper arc over the bar or a gymnast do a cartwheel? How would a columnar spine handle any amount of horizontal force (e.g. tackles, car accidents)? How supportive is a column when it is parallel to the ground?

Unlike a column, the spine suspends and is suspended. There are complex relationships of connective tissue and curvature. Its shape reflects its function, which is to provide the dynamic support that creates the frame in which all of the other organs can live. The spine can and must be stable yet flexible, straight yet curved, operating as one yet comprised of many.

A paradox is something that invites us out of our usual way of thinking. Just as climbing to the top of a lighthouse offers a new perspective, considering the spine as a paradox can perhaps shine a light on one of the most central aspects of our being.