Hallelujah for Winter!

In the depths of winter I finally learned

that within me there lay an invincible summer.

- Albert Camus

For the last two weeks I have been under a lot of stress. Stress over money, debts, job security, kid’s activities. You name it and I was probably worrying about it. I was a nervous wreck and needed to relax.

There is a section of the Monon Trail just north of where I work and walking it has helped me “de-stress” many times. So, on Friday I decided to take a walk over lunch to “connect with nature” a little and hopefully unwind.

I drove to the trail-head and walked for about 20 minutes, but it didn’t help. With all the green foliage and birds gone, the Monon seemed like little more than a big sidewalk. It just wasn’t cutting it as the “little piece of the natural world” that I was longing for. Not to mention that I couldn’t escape the thoughts that were haunting me.

It was all over the news that this weekend was going to be cold. Not just cold, but frigid with subzero temps. So, last night as I sat on the fireplace hearth enjoying the fire and drinking warm mulled wine , I planned my escape. I would go for an early morning hike to connect with nature, and embrace the elements.

I picked the Morgan-Monroe State Forest for my hike as it is pretty close to my house and deeply wooded. On my drive there I passed a bank thermometer and it said it was 2 degrees F. Perfect!

Bundled up in several layers of clothing, I set forth on the Tecumseh trail around 9:30 AM. The sky was clear, the sun bright and the air crisp. I hadn’t hiked long at all when I realized that this forest was not dead or sleeping. Though perhaps not fully awake, it was certainly stirring. I heard and saw a number of birds. Blue Jay, Cardinal, Woodpecker. There were also deer, raccoon, and other “critter” tracks. The trees might be bare and the ground hard, but the forest was very much alive!

Following the trail along the ridge top, my eye was caught by a stream that ran down the hill through a ravine. The stream was frozen solid, even as it flowed over the rocks to the floor below. The frozen stream was facing east and as the early morning sun played on it’s surface it sparkled more beautifully than diamonds.

I was happy as I sat on a rock facing the sun. “This is what I was looking for. This is what I needed.”, I thought. My heart was lighter than in had been in some time. Taking a deep breath, I stood and made my way back to the trail-head.

As I was walking to my car I noticed several people walking around the forest office. I was surprised to see so many people on such a cold morning. On a whim I drove through the campground and to my surprise and delight – it was packed! Almost every campsite was taken and numerous people were milling about enjoying this special day.

How wonderful to realize that even in the dead of winter, nature has the power to sooth and inspire us. Hallelujah for Winter!

The REAL Coyote Ugly

I had hoped to stay away from “heavy” topics during the month of December and focus instead on more positive, uplifting pieces. But of course, the ugly side of human nature never takes a break. Even during the holidays man’s inhumanity and greed are rarely in short supply.

So here we go…back in the summer, Michael Vick took a lot of heat for betting on dog fighting. Many reasonable people were enraged to learn that this barbaric practice was still alive and well in 21^st century America.

Now I’m learning that my state, along with others, is taking part in the practice of trapping and then selling coyotes and foxes to other states where they are put in fenced enclosures to be chased by packs of dogs. Supposedly, this is to “train” the hunting dogs, but ultimately it results in the death of the foxes and coyotes as they’re torn apart by the dogs.

Oh yeah and let’s not forget that this is entertainment too! How could I forget that part?

“Quick hon, grab me another PBR! That coyote is up against the fence and there’s 6 hungry dogs smellin’ dinner!”

Please, please, please visit the web link I have here for the Humane Society for the United States. Even if you don’t live in one of the states listed at the bottom of the page, contact the DNR offices of those states and tell them you support the Humane Society’s efforts to end this barbaric practice.

http://www.hsus.org/hunt/news/wildlife_penning_exposed.html

 

Christmas Edition of “Getting to know your friends”

I don’t usually do these things, but I’ve been dropping some heavy stuff on ya’ll for awhile now. So, in the spirit of the season I’m lightening it up a bit.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Wrapping paper. Not into DOING the wrapping, but fun to open and pretty to look at.

2. Tree–Real or Artificial?
Real deal baby. We’ve been artificial for years, but I heard a good argument for real having less impact on the environment. There’s nothing like a good rationalization, so we went green again this year and I love it. Beautiful Douglas Fir that fills the house with it’s wonderful fragrance.

3. When do you put Christmas tree up?
Early December. November is for Thanksgiving.

4. When do you take the tree down?
New Year’s Day.

5. Like egg nog?
Not a huge fan, but I’ll have some if it’s offered.

6. Do you have a nativity scene?
Small one.

7. Favorite gift received as a child?
Hard to choose, but loved my Stretch Armstrong and that old football game with the vibrating guys on the metal playing field.

8. Hardest person to buy for?
Father-in-law. He has most everything he wants and so is hard to shop for.

9. Easiest person to buy for?
My youngest son. Just happy to have presents.

10. Worst Christmas gift?
Lottery Tickets.

11. Mail or email Christmas Card?
Mail, but you might not get it until New Years Eve.

12. Favorite Christmas movie?
Wish for Wings that Work, Charlie Brown Christmas, ELF, Believe it or not there is an old X-Mas Twilight Zone episode that I really like called, “Night of the Meek” starring Art Carney. That thing makes me tear up. Also Love Christmas Story and It’s a Wonderful Life.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
Uh…hello…Santa takes care of all that. Duh!

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
Yes, I am guilty of re-gifting.

15. Favorite food to eat on Christmas?
Probably Pecan pie. So much great food so little time.

16. Clear or colored tree lights?
I am a traditionalist, so I prefer having real candles on the tree. However, the Fire Department prefers that I like colored lights best. In all seriousness, Christmas is about traditions and memories, so I am still a big fan of the big ol’ colored bulbs we used to put on the trees in the 60s and 70s.

17. Favorite Christmas Song?
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen. The Story of Snoopy vs. the Red baron.

18. Travel during Christmas or Stay home?
Usually travel to the in-laws x-mas day.

19. Can you name Santa’s reindeer’s?
If I have to. I like Homer Simpson’s naming of them best.

20. Angel or Star on Tree top?
Santa

21. Open presents on Christmas Eve or morning?
Kid’s each get one present from us on Christmas Eve. Santa brings the rest Christmas Eve night. I’m surprised I have to keep explaining this to you people.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
The commercialism and buy, buy, buy. I heard a commercial that said “don’t stay up too late Thanksgiving Night so you’ll be good and rested to start shopping Friday morning.”

23. Do you attend Christmas Eve services?
We’re Unitarians, so it might be a little different, but yes the Christmas Eve service has become one of our favorite family traditions.

Get out there and “Be Merry”

For My People in the Struggle

It’s been a hectic, worrisome week and with Thanksgiving just around the corner this came to me today. I guess I’ve gone straight-up hippie, but I hope you enjoy it.

For My People in the Struggle
Mother Earth is warming and her children are in denial.
But here’s some pain medicine
Wildflowers in spring still smell sweetly and the sunrise holds the promise of a better day
Be thankful today

For My People in the Struggle
Our cousins that fly, swim, and run suffer because of our greed
But here’s some pain medicine
The red hawk has returned home and at night I hear the coyote’s howl!
Be Thankful today

For My People in the Struggle
Many of our brothers and sisters are alone, hungry and lost
But here’s some pain medicine
The scent of a newborn held tightly connects us
to the eternal and the
Universe still shines in the eyes of the ones we
love
Be Thankful today

For My People in the Struggle
Here’s some pain medicine
YOU are loved
Be thankful today

Soylent Green is People

 

In the movie Soylent Green, Charlton Heston plays a police officer named Robert Thorn in a very dystopian society. Natural resources are depleted, the earth has heated up, and air and water quality are poor. Plus, overpopulation has made feeding the poor and middle-class a matter of national emergency. Remember, this is a work of fiction from the 1970s, not today’s headlines. While investigating the death of an executive at the Soylent Corporation, Thorn makes an interesting discovery. The food that is being provided to the people of the world is not made from sea plankton like the company advertises. It is instead made from the euthanized remains of people. And so, one of cinema’s most recognized catch phrases is born. “Soylent Green is People!”

After watching Michael Moore’s movie Sicko and an episode of PBS’s NOW this week, I couldn’t help but think of Soylent Green.

Michael Moore takes a lot of criticism from the right for his movies exaggerating facts and being very one sided. I’m not here to argue that there is no exaggeration in Sicko, but if any of it is true then we should all be paying attention.

Americans have a genetic predisposition against paying taxes. Boston Tea party anyone? The idea of funding a “Universal Health Care System” by paying higher taxes is very worrisome to many Americans. So, instead of paying higher taxes to make sure that all citizens have access to at least some basic level of health care. We instead pay ever higher insurance premiums while wages remain stagnate and we receive lower benefits. And that only applies to those of us who are able to afford insurance. What about the ones who can’t? And if something doesn’t change in the future, eventually employers are not going to be able to pay their portion of the healthcare premiums and will stop offering health insurance to their employees. Then the number of uninsured Americans will, of course, continue to increase. But at least my taxes won’t go up!

One of the most emotional scenes for me in Sicko is when we learn of American hospitals kicking patients out of hospitals and dropping them off on the street. “Soylent Green is People!” Thank God, Michael Moore is making this stuff up! There is no way that a hospital in the richest country on earth would ever put its citizens out on the street, sometimes wearing only a hospital gown, right? Please tell me this is some of Michael Moore’s fiction. But unfortunately, this is not a work of fiction, it’s true and some hospitals in our larger cities have taken a lot of heat for this practice.

Fellow Hoosier Kurt Vonnegut often quoted another native son of Indiana, Eugene Debs. Debs, of course, was a Socialist and therefore as God-fearing Americans we probably shouldn’t listen to his “corruptive” words, but let’s be brave and listen anyway.

As long as there is a lower class, I am in it.
As long as there is a criminal element, I am of it.
As long as there is a soul in prison, I am not free.

I would like to add to Deb’s words by saying.

As long as there is an uninsured American, I am not well.

One of the arguments President Bush gives to avoiding a government run healthcare system is that “medical decisions should be made between patients and their doctors. Not the government” Isn’t it interesting that so many of our elected officials suffer from this sense of self-loathing? They’re part of the government and yet they hate government. This reminds me of certain elected officials who tirelessly fight to protect American values from “corrupt” ideas like same-sex marriage, only to participate in same-sex shenanigans themselves. Wages may be stagnate for many of us, but the Psychoanalysts must be raking it in hand over fist!

But let’s get back to keeping medical decisions between doctors and their patients. Let’s be honest, the decisions being made are by the insurance companies, not doctors. I’ve been in doctors and dentists offices and while being examined by the doctor I’ve overheard the office staff on the phone arguing with an insurance company concerning coverage for a patient. Many times the doctor has told me, “I’m glad I don’t have to deal with that.”

I am not advocating a socialist medical system. What I am advocating is for humanity to act humanely and to care for each other. I’m advocating for our elected officials, the heads of HMOs and insurance companies, and especially us as American citizens, to care when someone is suffering. If we really are the richest, best country on earth then there surely must be a way for all of our citizens to have access to good, basic medical coverage. Let’s make sure that the future depicted in films like Soylent Green remains a work of fiction and never becomes reality.

Into The Wild

(Author’s note: This review of Into the Wild concerns the movie, not the book.)

If you know anything about this movie, you know that the protagonist, Christopher McCandless, was trying to find “truth” as he saw it through an intimate experience with Nature and by enjoying life’s simple pleasures. He was not materialistic at all and in fact was trying to escape materialist attachments. So, it was a very strange juxtaposition for me that the only theater showing this movie within 50 miles of my house was the Landmark cinema in Castleton. Castleton, to my way of thinking, is a fairly affluent part of Indianapolis. I noticed many of the people in attendance were driving Lexus or Hummer’s and I’ve rarely seen so many North Face jackets outside of a REI catalog. I don’t know that this necessarily means anything, but to me, it does point out that very few of us are capable of making the sacrifices Alexander Supertramp made. Of course, to him they were not sacrifices, but a way of freeing himself.

Into the Wild follows the real life adventures of Christopher McCandless, aka Alexander Supertramp, as he “tramped” across the United States for two years seeking truth and ultimate freedom.

Christopher is an “A” student at Emory University who feels that his parents’ life-long pursuit of material “things” has not made them happy and in fact might be partially responsible for their damaged lives. Not wanting to end up like them, he rebels against the pressure they put on him to attend the “right” school and get the “right” job. So, upon graduation from Emory he donates almost $25,000 to charity, burns his social security card, cuts up his driver’s license and starts living a life on the road. Along the way he meets other people who are often searching for something themselves. Christopher’s sense of empathy and compassion help him connect with them and find a measure of healing. They also teach him a great deal about life. Overtime Christopher McCandless slowly transforms into his alter-ego, Alexander Supertramp. He comes to the conclusion that he will find what he’s looking for, ultimate freedom, in Alaska. So, he sets out for Alaska and finds his destiny in an old abandoned bus.

Director Sean Penn did an excellent job bringing author Jon Krakauer’s book to the big screen. I could really relate to the frenetic pace that “Alex” encounters when he returns to “civilization” after being on the road for so long.  This is something I’ve felt myself.

Actor Emile Hirsch is amazing as Christopher McCandless/Alexander Supertramp.  He portrays Christopher with a very touching sense of innocence and sincerity.

I thought the cinematography was very good, but honestly, very few of the scenes really took my breath away.

I fell in love with Eddie Vedder’s (Of Pearl Jam fame) soundtrack for the film. It is bare bones, folksy, haunting at times and really makes one think of a simple life on the road.

***Spoiler Alert***

Yes Christopher McCandless was naive and not truly prepared for a life in the Alaskan backcountry.  But I can’t help but think that if he had successfully returned and lived longer, he would have become a voice that many of us would have listened to. He really reminds me of a modern day Thoreau or John Muir. The fact that his story resonates so strongly with so many of us should tell us he was on to something.

5 Magic Buses out of 5

Going green for God

Jeremiah 2:7 I brought you into a fertile land to eat it’s fruit and rich produce. But you came and defiled my land and you made my inheritance detestable.

Just a quick post today. I was very excited to see an article in the Indy Star this week titled Going Green for God. (<–Click where it says Going Green for God) Not only was it exciting to read an article where people of various faiths are realizing the importance of stewardship for our planet, but it was also very cool to see our church, The Unitarian Universalist Church of Indianapolis, play such a prominent role.

I was happy to see that most of the comments people have been leaving have been positive. Of course there are the more “interesting” ones. You know, “God is going to destroy the Earth anyway, so why bother” and “the purpose of the church is evangelism, not using fewer Styrofoam cups.” I can’t think of anything positive to say to change their minds. You guys hand out your pamphlets, the rest of us have work to do.

Life is a Highway

For many years I’ve considered myself to be an agnostic Humanist. I didn’t really believe in a God, but I kept the agnostic “crutch” because I felt many atheists were as close-minded as their Christian fundamentalist counterparts. It seemed arrogant and narrow-minded to me to say that one side is 100% wrong and the other is 100% right. All of us are only human after all and the universe is a big, big place. Maybe there is more going on here than we realize. But, as a rule, I accepted science as the way to understand how the universe works. I felt that the Humanist principles of ethics were sufficient to guide me in how to respect and treat my fellow human beings. My sense of “reverence” came from simple pleasures. Walking down a quiet hiking trail through a grove of tall pines, sleeping under the stars, spending time with my family – these were the things that I cherished and held dear.

My world view started expanding a little in 2006. For some reason I don’t really understand, I felt like I wanted to perform a ritual of some sort to commemorate my 42nd birthday. I did some research on the internet and decided to hike in Indiana’s only designated wilderness area to a spot that is special to me and “meditate on my ancestors” to “seek their guidance” as to what my life’s path should be. I didn’t really expect anything to happen, but thought it would be a “cool” thing to do on my birthday. On my way to the forest I stopped in a store and bought some sage for cleansing and some blue corn to give the Earth as a gift. I hiked out to this spot and performed my ceremony. When I was done I left my gift and I felt very content and connected to the world around me. The hike back to my car went very quickly. On my way out though, I came across a large feather on the trail that hadn’t been there on my way in. I was very happy to find it, even though this is a wilderness area, I’ve very rarely seen wildlife out there. Anyway, when I came home I looked up the feather and decided I would accept it as a gift from the Earth. This experience deepened my connection to the natural world, but after a few days I kind of put it behind me and got on with my life.

Now in my 44th year things are getting…interesting. There has been very little rain for our area this summer. While out hiking with my family a few weeks ago I was really struck by how the trees were suffering from the lack of rain. The leaves were curling up and falling off. The pine needles were turning brown and brittle. That, combined with all the news I was reading about global warming and our impact on the natural world, really had me down and worried about the future. A day or so after all of this I was reading Wind Dancer’s blog over on Smirking Chimp and she had just written a post about building a medicine wheel and all the unusual things that had started happening after she did that. She also said that she was preparing to build a sweat lodge to seek a vision. I left a comment wishing her well and telling her my worries for the future. Then she said something very unusual. She told me to build a medicine wheel. Yeah right, me build a medicine wheel, but I thought about it some and decided, “What the Hell?” Once I decided to do this I looked up pictures of medicine wheels in books and on the internet and gave a lot of thought about how I wanted to do this. That first night I had visions of wheels in my head all night and wouldn’t you know it – it rained the next day.

I picked the rocks I wanted to use very carefully. This might be mixing traditions a little, but I had these old Viking Rune things from my college years that I thought I would use, plus a couple of other things that were special to me. I ground some of my blue corn into meal and on Saturday the 15th I built my wheel. I did it at night in our garden. First I cleansed myself with the sage. Then gave a little gift of corn to the four directions. I lit some candles and built my wheel. You can see from the picture below that it doesn’t really look like a wheel or much of a circle at all, but it was very dark. After the wheel was complete, I sat with my shoes off, meditated, said a little prayer and gave another gift of corn. It felt good and I felt at peace for several hours afterwards.

I should say at this point that things have been very tight for us financially this year and we are at that point in the pay period where we’re wondering how we can make things stretch until the next payday. So, the next day I was going through a stack of papers on our kitchen table and came across a letter from Kroger. I opened it and there was a $50 gift card inside. It was sent anonymously with only a small note that said, “We’ve been there too”. Wow…

Other “gifts” followed. I went out again Sunday night and then Monday my son found a working MP3 player underneath a pile of dirt and leaves in the park.

On the third night I sought an “image” from the wheel. I was very agitated all evening. It was warm outside, I felt exposed in my garden, I couldn’t get my sage to light easily. All these things had me worked up and it was not easy to get started. For the longest time no image was coming, but then I had a very clear image of a black snake coming through my neighbors yard and straight at me in my garden. This startled me and I cleared it out of my mind, but it kept coming back. I was looking all around the ground near me to make sure there wasn’t anything there. The next day I mentioned it to a friend of mine who has studied Native American ways and he said that the snake represents change and that it might be a sign of the change that I’m experiencing. This was followed by another gift. Another co-worker called me and said he had some meat he didn’t need and asked if my family might want it. So, when I say things are getting interesting, I’m not kidding!

I went out last night, the 4th night, and said a prayer of thanks for all the gifts we’ve received. Tonight I will put the wheel away and build a new one on the 23rd, the Autumnal Equinox. I asked my friend Wind Dancer for some book ideas and my friend Mark has loaned me several of his books. I still believe in science, but I feel like I am now on a very exciting journey into a much larger world. Stay tuned!

Appalachian Spring

The Appalachian Mountains

…We will feel mounting pressure to plunder the environment. We will have a crash program to build more nuclear plants, strip-mine and burn more coal, and drill more offshore wells than we will need if we begin to conserve now. Inflation will soar, production will go down, people will lose their jobs. Intense competition will build up among nations and among the different regions within our own country.

If we fail to act soon, we will face an economic, social and political crisis that will threaten our free institutions.

But we still have another choice. We can begin to prepare right now. We can decide to act while there is time.

-President Jimmy Carter April 18, 1977

How prophetic were the words of this former Governor of an Appalachian state. Almost 30 years after President Carter outlined the energy proposal that would free us from independence on Middle Eastern Oil; our environment is under attack like never before.

 

“Clean” Coal Technology at work

For over 200 years my family has called the hills and hollers of the Appalachian Mountains of Eastern Kentucky home. I remember all too well driving to my grandmother’s house in the 1970s and seeing the mountains razed as we passed the overflowing coal trucks on their way to the processing plants. I truly thought I’d never live to see those days again, but now thanks to the Bush administration, what was old is new again and strip mining (now called Mountain Top removal) is back again. Why? The reasons we are given are the increase in mining accidents and the high cost of oil. We’ve got to get that “black gold” to meet our energy needs. (Never mind that many of these mining accidents are caused because the coal companies are digging too deeply and removing support columns that contain coal.) So, the administration is saying that Mountain Top removal is a safer and more efficient method of mining. Safer for whom? It’s certainly not safer for the inhabitants of the Appalachian communities that are under assault. These proud, hard working people are seeing their beloved mountains leveled. Their streams and creeks buried in coal sludge and slurry. The air they breathe full of dust and silica, and their drinking water black and unusable.

Remembering the early 1970s, I was very upset when I heard that Bush had basically told the coal industry, “Go get me that black gold!” But I was moved and greatly heartened this weekend when I saw a piece on Bill Moyer’s Journal about the growing groups of people of faith in the Appalachians who are taking on the coal companies and the Bush Administration head on. A group called Christians for the Mountains poses some very interesting questions. To paraphrase, “Which mountain do you think God would come down here and blow up? Which streams and valleys would Jesus fill up with coal sludge?”

In my article “The Green Hills of Earth” I worried that when most of the Earth’s population is living in large cities, we won’t see the impact that we have on the natural world. Understanding that fact, the very tech-savvy people at ilovemountains.org have used the technology of Google Earth to create a short film showcasing a National Memorial for the Mountains.

You can watch it below.

It’s time that we listen to what President Carter was trying to tell us 30 years ago. It’s time that we break our fossil-fuel addiction and find a better, greener way to provide for the energy needs of our country. Blowing the tops off of mountains to get at the coal underneath is an act of desperation. It’s the act of an addict that is willing to do anything to get his next fix. Is this what America has become? Christians for the Mountains and others feel that the Earth is the body of God and must be protected. I couldn’t agree more. Call your senators and representatives and visit the links I’ve included below. Pronounce to the world that you are a lover of the mountains and fight to protect them!

President Carter’s 1977 Energy Speech.

Bill Moyer’s Journal

Christian’s for the Mountains

Appalachian Voices

I Love Mountains

United Mountain Defense

Appalachian Treasures Video

The Green Hills of Earth

I recently read that by the year 2050 or so most of the world’s population (expected to be over 9 billion people by that time) will live in large “Mega-Cities”. This is good news in many ways. First and foremost, I will most likely be lawn fertilizer by 2050. Secondly…. well, to be honest, I’m having trouble thinking of another example of how this is good news.

It’s not that I necessarily dislike cities. If you’re a lover of asphalt, smog, and the smell of human urine in a parking garage, then a large city is the place to be!

These mega-cities will, of course, drain resources from the remaining natural areas of the world. They will produce nothing of their own, only taking from the rest of the world. Well, perhaps that’s not entirely true. A large Mega-city with millions and millions of inhabitants is going to produce a helluva lot of excrement. Now, that’s progress!

And as their inhabitants become more separated from the natural world, they will understand their place in it less and less. They will see animals, plants, air, water, only as resources for their consumption. Such people have always been around, but their numbers are likely to increase in this future of the Mega-city.

The real work of men was hunting meat. The invention of agriculture was a giant step in the wrong direction, leading to serfdom, cities, and empire. From a race of hunters, artists, warriors, and tamers of horses, we degraded ourselves to what we are now: clerks, functionaries, laborers, entertainers, processors of information. – Edward Abbey

As I said, we needn’t wait until 2050 to see people who are separated from the natural world. They are here today and will only grow in numbers as they and their descendants live and die isolated from the beauty of the natural world.

I currently work for a large company in a medium-sized city. The city has started putting up sound-barrier walls along the interstate. This is probably in an effort to soften the sound of traffic for the neighboring communities, but it adds to the feeling that you are driving in a maze. When I get to work, I walk through a different type of maze, this one of cubicles. I sit in meetings, watch my Inbox fill up, and answer phone calls. At the end of an eight-hour day, I reverse my morning commute, spend a few quick hours with my family and prepare to do the same thing again the next day. Is this living? It’s the end of living and the beginning of survival. It’s the end of the human race and the beginning of the bipedal insect people.

Going camping or hiking on the weekend is my escape. Hearing the wind in the trees, feeling the ground under my feet, seeing the look of discovery upon my children’s faces as they see or hear something new – all keep me grounded and capable of dealing with the “unreality” of my weekday existence.

When I describe my weekend experiences to my fellow cubicle inmates some share similar stories, but many stare at me in confusion.

“You slept in a tent on the ground?”

“Didn’t you feel dirty and nasty after awhile?”

“What about all the bugs?”

Many of my fellow cubicle inmates are avid golfers. Over the years, I’ve asked some of them what attracts them to the game. “Well, it’s just a good excuse to get outside and enjoy nature.” Is driving a golf cart, on a well-manicured course, really experiencing nature?

My son and I went rafting on a river in North Carolina recently. (You can read about it by clicking here.) When I describe the adventure to my fellow cubicle inmates and tell them how we did this on our own, without a guide, they stare at me in utter disbelief. They’ve seen things like that on TV or in video games before, but have never experienced such things themselves. For many of them adventure is to be experienced virtually, by watching “reality” TV shows or playing video games.

The environmental movement sometimes gets a bad rap as being elitist. I’m certainly not advocating that at all. I’m saying that nature is necessary for the human spirit and should not be viewed as only a resource for our needs. ALL people should experience the real world and the things it has to teach them.

What I am advocating is to get outside and experience nature. Don’t even finish reading this. Go outside now! If you have kids, get them involved in scouting, cultivate a garden, be part of a group that takes inner-city kids out into nature, join your local hiking club, visit your local farmer’s market. Do anything that connects you to the real world and makes you feel like a human being again.

Maybe then, when these mega-cities are on the scene, they will be made more sustainable and will be better places to live and not just giant ant colonies for the bipedal insect people. Maybe their inhabitants will not just think of a tree as so many pieces of paper, or a river as something to dump sewage into. Maybe instead, they will see nature as something precious and something worth protecting for themselves and their children.

Though men now possess the power to dominate and exploit every corner of the natural world, nothing in that fact implies that they have the right or the need to do so.”–Edward Abbey