On a deserted beach on one of the smallest islands in the Bermuda archipelago, Seafoam lay naked in the moonlight. Stars and fireflies sparkled above her. A meteor streaked across the sky on its way to the horizon. Seafoam’s mermaid tail rested on the wet sand just below the high tide mark. Her cormorant, Cosmo, stood on a nearby rock.

“I suppose I should head home now, if I want to be rested for my morning classes at the Academy.” She sat up and tied back her long, wavy red hair. Then she awkwardly scooted and wiggled to get herself properly into the water. Cosmo remained asleep on its rock; it would rejoin her at Atlantis during the daylight hours. Two dolphins came alongside to serve as her escorts. Now, instead of stars and fireflies, plankton glittered in the water around her.

Seafoam arrived at her lair in suburban Atlantis in the wee small hours of the morning. Under the light of an eight-armed octopus chandelier, she quickly prepared a warming cup of hot chocolate and a light meal of fish-and-chips. Cosmo arrived; she fed him a fillet of haddock.

The mermaid’s day passed swimmingly, with a morning Literature class, followed by History after lunch. But Seafoam got a surprise in her Science class. The instructor gave a challenging assignment; the students were to write an essay of 500 words or more on Aristotle’s Four Elements, with extra credit for 100 or more words on the Fifth Element. The essay was due Friday.

“Oh, crab!” She hadn’t paid attention in class during the lecture on the Four Elements. Her textbook barely mentioned the subject. She couldn’t get any info from the in-the-net since Atlantis was not connected to the World-Wet-Web. She would just have to wing it, like a giant manta ray.

Aristotle postulated that all matter consisted of Four Elements – Earth, Water, Air, and Fire. Everything is made up of these four elements, in varying proportions. For example, the Ocean obviously is composed mostly of Water; it is bounded by Earth and by the atmosphere (or Air). Fire gives Ocean its character, its spirit; the Ocean might rage or be peaceful; it might erupt in a tempest tantrum, goaded by a great storm which is a characteristic of Air.

Earth gives animals their form, yet all animals are largely Water. They cannot survive without Air. Fire animates them and gives them Spirit. The animals that contain the most Spirit, (for example, mermaids and dolphins) are the most active and the most intelligent. Predatory animals are rich in Spirit. Animals such as oysters have little Spirit; they are sedentary and exhibit no intelligence. They compensate for this lack by being delicious. Most birds, with the exceptions of penguins and ostriches, replace some of their Earth with Air and Spirit. It is because they are made largely of Air that they can fly.

Fire is a powerful Element that can destroy Earth. Yet, in the form of a volcano, it can both create and destroy Earth, often changing it to Air. However, in most of its forms, it needs Air. Fire usually can be extinguished by Water. Importantly, when properly combined with Spirit, Fire brings Life to creatures composed of Earth and Water.

“Damp! I only have about 250 words, half of what I need! Oh, the halibut! I’m on my way to the Azores, to cavort with the sperm whales, great beasts of Water whose long-ago ancestors walked the Earth. I’ll also spend some time in one of the thermal springs on the submerged western slopes of São Miguel Island, where Earth releases Fire to become Water.”