Richard Dawkins. The selfish gene (№ 182009)

Individuals are not eternal, they are transitory. Chromosomes also go into oblivion, like a stack of cards received by each player and played soon after delivery. But by the cards during the shuffle, nothing happens. The cards are genes. Genes are not destroyed in the crossing over, they just change partners and continue to move forward. Of course, they move on. It's their job. They are the replicators and we are the machines needed for them to survive. After we completed its task, we have discarded. But genes come from geological time, they are here forever.