AS THANKSGIVING APPROACHES
AS THANKSGIVING APPROACHES, many of us are—as always—especially thankful for wild places and wild things. For the peace and perspective to be found there. For clean granite shorelines and clear waters. For the call of the loon. For dark skies where the constellations can still be seen. For the howl of the wolf and the track of the moose. For the old pines of the North and the sequoias and redwoods of the West. For desert monuments and ragged mountain peaks. For remnant prairies, barrier islands, coral reefs and rocky seacoasts.
We love these places because they remind us what it means to be a human being on planet Earth. And because they touch something in our souls that has been there since time immemorial. But in loving them we know we must also care for them, and work to preserve and restore them. Even when—especially when—those in power dismiss such concerns. Or actively attack or subvert them.
So today I am grateful. I am thankful for all the blessings of wild beauty I have been able to share with my children, and now my grandchildren. I know there is much work to do in order to secure those blessings for the children and grandchildren to come. As there always has been. That is the price we pay for loving wild places and wild things.
(This is my latest Substack post. You can subscribe to me there at Notes From The Campfire@douglaswoodauthor. Thanks!)