Death Cab For Cutie

[from Nick's blog, Colony Collapse]

I was walking around Berlin today and came across this piece of graffiti. It reads: “and when we touch we’re not really touching. if our atoms did not repel one another we’d pass through each other like galaxies, unscathed.” It’s a striking thought and I found myself thinking about the nature of love and connection for the rest of the day. How is it that we ever find anyone to fall in love with? Or they are able to find us? Does fate intervene ever? I also wonder, where did this quote come from? It sounds familiar to me. Is it original or did some famous poet or author or songwriter pen it somewhere before it was spray painted on a construction site barricade in Berlin? I did a quick internet search for this quote and came up with a short story called The Mighty Atom by Bill Bryson; that makes a reference to a quote by science writer Timothy Ferris that is close but not exact; other than that I didn’t come up with much. Any ideas?