In 1883 half of the Island of Krakatoa, between Indonesia and Australia, blew up in a great volcanic eruption. The other half of the Island was covered with volcanic ash. They say that in some places, that ash was 100 feet thick and blew on the winds as far as Madagascar across the Indian Ocean. It was the most violent volcanic explosion in the history of man. That beautiful island was destroyed. All the life, both human and animal, was killed.

Yet ten years later, Krakatoa was once again green and beautiful. The jungles, so dense that the first human visitors to it had to use knives to cut their way through. This is what happened. Microscopic bits of organic matter, tiny living cells, were carried by the winds to the island where they settled on the ashes. There they lived only six hours…