If you were to obtain a small play sand bucket with a shovel, and place in it, with the play shovel. The following: a shovel full of sand, small pebbles, and small stones, and then fill the bucket with water. You then would stir the contents with the small shovel, in a circular fashion, trying to get all of the contents to rise off the bottom. When all of the contents would be suspended in water, while standing in a drive way with the bucket, you would spill the suspended contents in the drive way by tipping the bucket over. What do you think would happen to the contents of that bucket? If you are not sure what would happen, you may want to wait until the warm months and try it for your self. Most likely the puddle would look something like this, the stones would mostly be closest to the bucket, next you would notice the pebbles, and dispersed between the stones and pebbles would be the sand, but most of the sand would be farthest from the bucket. The majority of the puddle at the end would contain, no stones or pebbles but sand and then just water.

You have made an artificial river stream, with that bucket, and it's contents. If you have ever observed a river emptying into the ocean, you most certainly notice all that sand and silt that is carried out into the ocean. Delta's are formed by river's carrying out silt and sand and small pebbles out into the ocean, because the river slows down as it empties out into the ocean, the contents begin to settle out from the water.

Your filter paper ( paper towel ) strip was acting like a stream, the water going upward ( capillary action ), and it carried the dissolved contents with it. If the experiment was carried out correctly you would have noticed bands of color showing up. The heaviest particles ( similar ) or color band would be at the bottom and the lightest particles ( similar ) would be at the top.

Things of similar density would show up together.

I like to think of it, as birds of the feather flock together, when is the last time you saw a pigeon flying in a flock of crows, never happen.

Notice smokers, drinkers tend to stick together, you never notice a young individual obtaining a pack of cigarettes, or a six pack of beer, and going off alone to enjoy his vice. They always look for company to join them! Here is where peer pressure plays an important role, friends do it so you in turn will do it.

Psalms 119:63 ¶ I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts.

Can you honestly say that your companions are those that keep God's precepts? You know the old expression goes, something like this. You show me your friends and I will be able to tell you, the kind of habits you have.