A mixed up life

We have calculated the constituents of the human body in some detail. Imagine we could weigh out the chemicals present in the human body and mix them in the right proportions in a rather large bucket. We would then have the chemical constituents of a human being in all the right proportions but this chemical soup would not be identifiable as a living entity. On staring into this bucket, two mysteries would cross my mind for further contemplation; two mysteries that are central in the origin of life.

i. That which separates my body and mind from the contents of the bucket is simply the arrangement of the chemical mixture. If this is true (and according to science it is the only option available) then there is something very special about seemingly ordinary looking powders and liquids that is hidden in most conditions (I use the term powders and liquids in a very liberal sense for elements and compounds have a diverse range of physical forms). It is also true that there is extraordinary potential in their arrangement, for from particular dynamic patterns spring forth bodies and minds. We are not yet knowledgeable enough to comment with depth on most of these extraordinary properties and the patterns that allow them to spring forth from apparently ordinary materials because our investigations (although promising) are in their infancy.

ii. The means by which the constituents of the bucket could become arranged into my own form is a mystery. We are aware of forces that introduce patterns into the universe whether they determine the interactions of molecules or the movements of the stars. It would seem that similar universal forces have been responsible for introducing the patterns that separate my form from the mixture in the bucket. The origins of life remain a mystery but perhaps we can make some sensible comment on the process whilst accepting the likelihood that we have yet to find key pieces in an incomplete puzzle.
Let us stare into this bucket to remind ourselves of the relationship between the lifeless and the living which at some level we are all aware of. Let us turn to its contemplation to illustrate the uncomfortable realities of our chemical composition. Given that I am too a chance association of chemicals then in theory, if my individual pattern, at the time of looking into the bucket, were exactly imposed upon its contents then the resulting form would be identical in all my mental and physical characteristics. It would have all the scars and cuts of my own body and would have all the memories and abilities of my own mind. It would not be a clone for a clone would not have the experience of past living imprinted somewhere in its molecular arrangement. It would be much more than this for when it first opened its eyes and spoke its thoughts it would do so as though it had lived every single moment of my life.
I am uncomfortable with this as I imagine many people would be. If you believe that we are a complex association of chemicals and that our properties will be explained in terms of the principles with which 21st century science is familiar then this is what you must accept. We must think of every property of living things as a specific arrangement of lifeless material. I am only comforted by the thought that the qualities of seemingly ordinary powders and liquids must truly be extraordinary as are revealed in living things. The forces at work in the universe and the material upon which they act are remarkable in the extreme and we do not have a full understanding. Quite what the extent of our ignorance is of course we cannot say. I for one have an open mind as to the extent of the discoveries that await but I do not know whether we have the capabilities to make such discoveries or achieve such understanding. After all, we have no such divine right.