The particle physicist’s Standard Model recognizes four fundamental forces

• the Strong nuclear force, which holds atomic nuclei together
• the Weak nuclear force, which mediates some kinds of radioactivity
• Electromagnetism, which holds molecules together
• Gravity, which holds together planets and stars and galaxies and such

On Terry Pratchett’s Diskworld*, the Druids also recognize four fundamental forces but at a much higher level of emergent structure

• Charm
• Persuasiveness
• Chaos/Uncertainty
• Bloody-mindedness

I suggest that the seasons presents us with an excellent example of this Druidic principle

• Springtime is clearly all Charm
• Summertime uses Persuasion to bring forth crops and lull us to sleep
• Fall is Chaos, with school terms starting and fallen leaves fluttering everywhere, especially into the gutters
• Winter — ah, bloody-mindedness in action, both in its effects and in what it takes to get through them.

~~ Rich Olcott

* – The Light Fantastic, halfway down the right-hand page