I love robots. Transformers (the original) is my # 2 favorite movie. Every time I’m in front of an insurmountable foe, I just tell myself, “Megatron must be stopped… no matter the cost.”

When I was in 2nd grade, we had to build a robot. I dreamed of hammering a mechanical, steam-powered automaton to life… The day came and we ended up gluing cardboard cut outs from milk cartons. But I can do better.

I went to Japan last week and came across Gundams: complex robot toys built from snap-together parts. “Ah, HA!” said I… tiny life. For 1500 yen a pop!

I can’t stop looking at the instructions…the kanji are completely indecipherable except for the shapes.

At the end of grade school, we took a standardized test, testing our verbal and non-verbal skills. I loved the non-verbal section. My score was a 40/40 tying only Amanda Payne for awesome-acity.

Years later, I see those same shapes in the Gundam instructions. Shape driven. Pattern recognition. Warning Signs without explanation.

If you follow the Pattern, be it connect-the-dots, or Gundam-building, this whole new understanding Gestalts. It’s like following a trail in the forest, or a conversation with someone amazing…

…You look around at the end and you’re somewhere you never thought you’d be, doing something you never thought you’d be able to do.