A Place of the Broken Heart: Eulogy for Wilderness Lost
We are losing an irreplaceable piece of Earth today. In this rare riparian area, old growth Ponderosa, Scarlet Gilia, deer, elk, fox, swallows, butterflies have flourished. All gathered here because this is their Home. It has provided sustenance, food and free flowing water, for generations,. Starting today it will no longer be sustaining. It will no longer be a functioning ecosystem. It will now longer be Home.
When we begin to speak out loud about what we really love, what nourishes us deep in our souls- it is never about subdivisions, malls or roads. It is about the sunflower’s smiling face that makes our disposition a bit more sunny. Or the glimpse of the fox retreating into shadow of brush. We speak reverently of our ever changing mountain. We feel sheltered by our sweet smelling trees. We gather along water. This is what nourishes our souls. The very same things that nourish life for our non-human companions on this earth.
How many more losses will we allow? How many more deaths must we absorb into our collective broken heart before we realize that this behavior will break us When will we finally acknowledge that more and bigger doesn’t really fill up empty spaces inside our souls.
I want to stop losing magic. And my first step toward this is to say out loud; Nature is sacred. The lives of our animal and plant neighbors are precious. There will be death going on here today, and I am so sorry. We must stop acting as if living in Nature is a matter of only science, reason or economy. If we want to flourish in a community with heart and soul, then we must protect what nourishes our collective heart and soul. Wild places. Close to our homes, part of our daily living.
We have lost this precious wild place. Lets do everything we can before we lose another. (McMillan Mesa, Mars Hill, A-1 mountain, …