Creative seniors are prolific, writing memoirs of their lives to be shared with children, grandchildren and others — a data bank of World War II, growing up in the Midwest or the daunting experience of tackling the fortunes and misfortunes of their ancestors.

And then there is Ted Farrell of San Marcos. Now in his 80s, he continues the intrigue of quantum theory — and a new slant that coincides with Einstein’s long-held but never accepted views. “I Agree with Einstein: Learning About the Quantum Reality” took Farrell two years to write and a lifetime of conjecture.

The subject matter may be difficult for a layman to absorb, certainly science and the universe is complex. But, Farrell, a retired trial lawyer, uses his courtroom advocacy to bring simplicity out of complexity in a step-by-step process. Written in a trial-like setting, there is an opening statement, closing argument and the presentation of evidence.

And if you are doubtful about reading a semi-law book, his daughter, Lorrie MacKenzie, gives credence and delight to the subject. She recalls that when she and her sister were children, “Dad constantly encouraged us to think about the mysteries of the cosmos … and the latest findings in the world of physics.”

With simplistic instruction, Farrell encouraged his young daughters. When Lorrie was very small, she remembers how she pictured a wall around the universe and trying to climb over it. As a teenager she read science fiction, related to the moon as a close neighbor, the universe as a potential second home. “String theory offered a whole new level of interest and complication.”

Farrell was born in Bisbee, Ariz., and moved to Los Angeles in 1934. “I started doing thought experiments when I was 14 using hypothetical golf balls, imagining only two things existing in the universe — golf ball “A” and golf ball “B” both going a million times an hour,” he says. “Or was A standing still and B going 2 million miles times an hour or was B standing still?” But then he hypothesized if everything became a million times larger or a million times smaller, including himself, he would never know the difference. Stumped by the concept of “light,” Farrell had no idea that others found it intriguing also. He now writes, “Light is kind of poor man’s gravity and that gravity is much more interesting than even light.” Big questions for a young man to ponder.

Growing up, college and law consumed his life until years later. With retirement, Farrell had time to explore and resolve the questions of what the fundamental structure of the universe is all about. In his hilltop home he writes, and hosts meetings for persons of like interest, exploring how to make sense out of such challenging questions.

Someone once said, “Reading and writing are good for the soul,” Whether it is delving into one’s personal heritage or investigating the fascinating complexities of the universe, putting our “little grey cells” to work gives added vigor to one’s life.

“I Agree with Einstein” by Ted Farrell with Lorrie MacKenzie is available on Amazon.com or at Lorrie@memoryphotos.net.