thanks for opening your mind to follow this issue of European Surgery. This issue collects a colourful spectrum of distinct scientific contributions related to upper GI surgery, colorectal surgery, oncologic medicine and beyond. May the selections meet your interests and help you to get a better understanding of the diseases you aim to diagnose, treat and manage during your daily profession. May the readings foster positive vibrations and thoughts.

Surgery lives within the ancient legacy of human myth telling. Surgery evokes to search for the truth, to search for the essence of any perception (anatomical layer; disease). As such ancient texts explain how all is connected. These texts explain how organs (liver, heart, gut, breast, eye) equal human characteristics (greed, hate, humility, love), qualities and behaviour (believe, anger, hope, joy). These texts show how tissues reflect specific conduct of reasoning and model of the world. Cells are what tissues show. Organs nourish the galaxies of our dreams.

Maybe these ancient texts aimed to say: all thinks. So what? Why is there so much a do about nothing?

Ulysses, Hamlet, Caesar Salad, Pepper and Salt, Shake, Burning and Spear. Live up and enjoy!!

E Sophon e soph a go thy roads and para roads are empty and full at the same liver and lung, mixture of gall goitre contemporary pancreatic colleagues google the web for further extensions of various splenic types of exodus secretions: way in and way out no doubt: dub the gut goods and fishermen kindness for you rhino bladder of the positivity to witness what may be coming up and around: tea and coffee stages (TMN) collected with the beans (happy swimming genetic tools of very variations and funny fugues). As some are allowed to collect surface material (fungi) they aim to estimate to see what is going in on the ground (powder). Ground not always climbs up into your perception. Ask the pathologist. Ask the radiologist. Ask nobody (Homeric seems on). Ask James Dean. Any Dean. Deny.

Thanks for allowing your space time to get over those lines and stones of a specific, particular world of scientific manifestation of human behaviour and mind set. It is great that you find your tunes to open your attention for those unique mirrors of human spirit, mind and colourful constellations of consciousness. It is all about you and those who you see, think of and know and those who you are not allowed to know, but whose actions you may feel and consider to happen. This is why many data come up with the conclusion, that all is connected, all is one and this “all is one” happens now (Fig. 1).

Sunrise at seaside mirrors the idea of the author that all is one and that science aims to translate this notion into positive treatable signs

First of all this is to thank all those beautiful minds and beautiful people who contribute to European Surgery. We should not take it for given that such a projects lives, vibes and works, It is not to be given for granted that such a project reaches your attention and allows the distribution of knowledge, perception and understanding. It is not to be taken for granted that this publication exists and collects within the myth of man, the most ancient legacy of our forefathers, brothers and sisters in mind. Taken together we have to live humility, at least for some short moments of the opening and closing of an eye. This eye may belong to the essence of life and science. We are a family. We belong to each other (Figs. 2 and 3).

The “gate to Europe” erected on the south Italian island of Lampedusa mirrors the idea of the author, that all humans sit in the same boat, that we are all connected and belong to each other; as such we belong to the same great family which should follow an harmonic approach towards our nature

The image obtained at the museum of Lampedusa cartoons the idea of the author that we all belong to one great family and that we should orchestrate unity for the benefit of health and wellbeing

Therefore this is to thank all those, who allow European Surgery to home, happen and take place. They know that the past harbours the future, i.e the estimate of our outcome. They all are aware of the fact, that the “once upon a time” theme carries the desires of our futures. The past is the spine of future, moves and tunes. As they all know that they fundamentally contribute to our current stream of conciseness. This is why we have to thank them.

Here we have to thank all who individually and emotionally contribute to European Surgery. They know that we all are sitting in the same boat. They all know that our Journal, our publication names after an old idea.

This idea can be easily misunderstood, but the idea can also be translated into one of the most fascinating, exciting and powerful attitudes of human behaviour and mind set: European motivates to understand: we are all one, we all belong to the same great family, which is allowed to exist and live on this wonderful planet earth (Figs. 2 and 3).

The idea teaches that the earth if full of passion and carries us through the endless space-time extensions of our galaxy. This milky way dances and mingles within the amazing chorus of millions of other turning and wobbling galaxies. And out there, maybe, we may meet other brothers and sisters of our kind, spirits and ideas of our kind, understanding and motivation of our kind, translators of human beings of our kind. As such again we face the fascinating idea: we are all one, all is one and as such opens the eye of Horus for the positive swing of the momental manifestation of NOW (Figs. 1, 2 and 3).

Perspective periods we are. Dots we collect. Spaces we understand. Swings we follow. Fields we spread. Energy opens it all. Within shades the idea, that all is one and may be thought as the “one is all in one”.

Physics may tune in and teach: all is one, and this is the energy and this energy may be understood as the collection of moving, dancing and continuously changing space time quanta. This model mirrors the idea that all is one (Heraclitus), is made of something (Leucippus, Democritus) and equals being (Parmenides). This model helps to successfully manage our environment and hopefully observe the same essentials. Otherwise, you and your assistance and nurse would not be able to successfully conduct a surgery.

Going in line with this notion, perceptions come into our consciousness and vanish out of our consciousness, they come and go, are given birth, are delivered and go away (Anaximander). As such we are all connected (± internet, SMS, What is up Sepp the Rap rubber dup style, I and I, you and you, playing the same game). Open the gates and fly.

Therefore this is to thank all beautiful minds, women and men, who support European Surgery. This is to thank all authors, reviewers, Springer office personal, the industry, the READERS (!!!) and those who foster the creation of new concepts and ideas. Due to their passion, endurance, critical attention, positive motivation, open mindset, creative energy they all contribute to foster the project and to make it happen.

Going in line with our recent editorials, European Surgery follows the myth of man. The idea assumes that surgery collects (logos) observations and images and translates them into treatable sings. As such diagnosis allows the creation of fruitful creative therapies. Remains to be questioned an essential piece of the puzzle: what is it, that thinks and reasons. Where is it, that thinks, reasons and considers? Is it within our body, our brain, our nerve cells? Where does it sit, that makes us think and consider and suggest and decide? Is it an IT, SHE, HE? Can it be caught within a term, word, a tune of painting, sculpture and music? What decides, when a reviewer makes her or his decision? Who and what decides? The thinking of the reviewer? The mind of the reviewer? Who is peer? Where rests and sits peer? What cosmic energy values the quality of submitted papers? Is it us or something else? Is it all? Is it thinkable? All together?

It seems that the above questions belong to the oldest legacies of human reasoning. All art and graft and architecture and painting and musics tries to translate answers to the above question: what is it, that thinks? Whose traces are we? Whose thoughts are we? Whose design do we follow? Which idea protects the cosmos? Who shares the eye of Horus? What gives quanta, fields, space, time and energies? What may be allowed to think reasoning?

To be honest, the author of those lines does not know the answer to this questions. The author of those lines even does not know anybody who may know an answer to the above question. If you, dear reader, know the answer or may know someone, who knows the answer to the above questions: please let us know immediately. You will definitely deserve the Nobel Prize 2024. As such we await.

But the author tries to give a motivation towards a better understanding of the idea: what thinks? May it be the perceptions we make and we do not make? Physics may model it this way: all equals a huge space time oriented energetic field. Our imagination and phantasy take this huge field and cut it down into little tiny space time quanta, which are fields (Carlo Rovelli), which continuously do what they have been taught from nature: they continuously change and vanish in front of the eyes of the observer.

The eyes of the observer say yes and are a part of the universe. As such our thinking is continuously created by the influence of all, of all galaxies, black and white holes, all space time quanta reasonable. If you wish to get further and out of the box, you may have to leave our universe and watch out for an other one (Richard Feynman). Perception always describes the past. Future may be forgotten atmosphere (James Joyce; Carlo Rovelli).

We now go back home. Return to our house. The above considerations teach that we should try to live humility, thankfulness and leave out hate, greed, envy and bloody hunger. We should not take for granted what we are allowed to borrow! All is borrowed: health, live, knowledge, disease and well being. Even a diagnosis is borrowed, a position is borrowed. Remains to be questioned: what gives all that? Unthinkable? Untreatable? Respect the limits!

As such we may be allowed to get down to the ground. Clean your roots, at least for the duration of the momental twinkle of an eye. Smile! Make it happen, that someone you meet returns a smile upon you? Smiles at you? Then it definitely has been a great and successful day. Fish for joy!

Stay tuned and foster unity.