Clearing Storm - West Virginia

Good Tuesday Morning -

Selling out.  When I was younger, that was maybe the worst criticism that you could level at someone - that they had sold out.  I never really knew anyone who had truly "sold out", mainly because everyone was working so hard just to make ends meet for their family.  No one really cashed in at the expense of their friends and neighbors and took off. 

When I finished college and took my first big kid job, I remember there being some shade about me leaving West Virginia - did I think I was too good for this place? - but in reality, I had already put some time in the mining and timber side of the world, and had decided that chances were, unless I got lucky and ended up in a spot where I could "sell out", that the job would quit on me way before I was ready to quit on it. 

Time passed, and I managed to find my way back to West Virginia on my own terms, and when I did I knew the score.  I made sacrifices to be here, because I wanted to figure out a way to give back, to try and make this place better for kids like me - kids that wanted to pursue their dreams, but do it in West Virginia. 

Now the whispers come back: "Is this place not good enough for you? Why would you want to change it?"; "Even if you succeed at what you're doing, it's just going to sell the rest of us out..."

I'll admit, that's tough on me, because a lot of the choices I've made were because I felt like I owed it to my friends, and my family that live here, to try.  To try like Hell to make this place better for all of us.

In the end, I've learned that this is all I can do.  If I make what I think is the best decision at every step along the way - not the easiest, not the most immediately gratifying, but what looks like the best - then the result is likely to be a good one. 

Love y'all.  Hope your holiday is awesome.

Clearing Storm - West Virginia

Daybreak on the Boardwalk - Florida

Good Friday Morning!

As I noted the other day, we usually travel by making big loops - see as many things as possible in the time we have out there, usually 3 days max in any one place. This trip was different - I had "Things To Do" while I was in Jacksonville, which meant staying in one place for the two weeks I was there, but that meant that I got to experience the city in a different way than when I usually travel. 

I got to experience the ebb-and-flow of the city - what does traffic look like? Where are folks going on the weekend?  And I got to have a few places that I went regularly and got a feel for the community there (shout out to The Edge Rock Gym for making me feel at home).  Overall, I feel like I "know" the city better than just about anywhere I've visited in the last 10 years. 

The more I think on it, maybe that will be the plan in the future - pick the city "in the heart" of somewhere I want to visit, and spend two weeks getting to know the place, the people, and the scenery - I already can think of a couple places I'd like to try... 

Headed into a holiday week, and getting back to the mountains of West Virginia next week.  Glad to be back. 

Daybreak on the Boardwalk - Florida

Boneyard Beach - Florida

Good Tuesday Morning -

The older I get, the more I realize that you can't do for other people what they won't do for themselves.  If they don't see the "good" around them in their life, you won't convince them of it.  If they don't see their own value, their own strength, you won't convince them of it.  I'm not a "pollyanna", in the sense that I don't think that all problems are solved by positive thinking - eventually, you have to do. 

Why do I bring this up?  Because in many ways, to be able to "do" for others, you have to have your own well to draw from.  If you don't see good in your life, it's going to be hard to do good for others.  If you don't have the energy, you can't give energy to others. 

To those who say "they give it all to (insert here)", does that mean you are giving them your best?  Because if you aren't taking good care of yourself, how well are you taking care of others?

This image is a milestone on my time in Florida - this was the first day my daughter was out of the hospital and able to be "out" on her own power. 

Boneyard Beach - Florida

Downtown Jacksonville Skyline - Florida

Good Friday Morning! 

I have never spent a lot of time in "cities" in the US - when I have historically traveled, I aim for a loop - a route - that lets me get the feel for a region, I try to find authentic places along the way, and get the heck out of town as fast as I can.  I've never spent weeks in one place. 

This trip made me do that, and it may make me re-evaluate how I visit some places in the future.  While my trip wasn't a "pleasure" trip, I tried to apply the same thinking - that I wanted to get to know the place, to visit the places that locals go, and get a bit out of the "tourist" comfort zone.  After talking with some folks at the hospital, they recommended the riverwalk in downtown Jacksonville as a place where folks would go for walks after work, but it wasn't part of the "tourist scene" on the other side of the river. 

I have to say, they made a good recommendation.  Jacksonville is a river city - the St. Johns River cuts right through the middle of town, and this little walk did a lot to show off the heart of this place.  I'll have more to say about Jacksonville over the next week or so, and maybe this means I'll have to think about taking longer trips to experience other great American towns. 

Downtown Jacksonville Skyline - Florida

Stillness in the Noise - Florida

Good Tuesday Morning -

It has been a crazy couple of weeks, as I had to travel to Florida for some medical issues with my daughter.  It's easy to say "Everything is ok" today, now that it is in the rearview mirror, but there were several very early mornings and sleepless nights in there.  

I am a very "action oriented" kind of person.  I tell my daughter that in much of life, "not making a decision" is the same as making a decision - something is going to happen - it's just that you don't get to have any control over what it is.  In cases like this one though, we had done what we could ahead of time, and all that was left was hurry-up and waiting.  On one of those very early mornings, I decided to go and watch the sunrise at the beach, and take some time to get my thoughts together.  This image from one of those mornings, where I was trying to channel some peace from my surroundings, taking some action for myself after months of action for her.  

Stillness in the Noise - Florida

Feeling the Earth Move Under Us - West Virginia

Good Friday Morning!

I love the feeling of movement.  I love to travel.  I love to explore.  I love it in almost all of it's forms - on foot, by bike, or by car.  

I can give you a short list of favorite places and can tell you something good about just about everywhere I've ever visited.  I love visiting new places, and learning something about the people, and how they live, and how things are different there.

And yet, I still come back and think that West Virginia is just about the best place I've ever been.  The natural abundance here is astounding.  There is still room to breathe, room to explore, and room to get away (although that is getting harder and harder these days).

Which mean evenings like the one captured here are pretty much my idea of perfection.  Feeling the world move under us, in my favorite place, with great weather, great light, and an empty road through the forest.

Feeling the Earth Move Under Us - West Virginia

Seeing, With Fresh Eyes - West Virginia

Good Tuesday Morning!

It's funny how a place can become associated with people over time.  The farm, the bar, the ball field.  Today's post is on that subject, and about turning the corner from sadness to...  something else. 

The Arden section of the Tygart is a beautiful place, and while I'd been there a few times before, it was Carmen and her crew that really made it a special place for me.  We climbed the rocks, hung out on the beaches, and lounged in the sun. 

And then everything happened. 

And all of a sudden, Arden wasn't a place of joy. 

And it was that way for a while. 

But time moved forward, and we talked, and we cried, and we laughed, and we remembered. 

And a few weeks ago, we went back to Arden for the first time in a long time.  We definitely stacked the deck in our favor - a beautiful summery feeling evening, cruising in the old truck, no plans, no schedule.  

And the warmth flowed over us, and we listened to the river run, and for the first time in a long time, we were able to see the beauty of the place.  The light, the noise, and we were able to remember - but not just the sad parts.

Then the sun laid right in the crook in the mountains.  And we were able to see, with fresh eyes.

Hope folks have a great week.

Seeing, With Fresh Eyes - West Virginia

Early Morning at Bucklick Branch - West Virginia

Good Friday Morning!

Rain, Rain Go...  Well, I'll be honest, I'm tired of the rain, and generally prefer sunny days and puffy clouds, but if we're going to get 10 straight days of rain (no, really), we'll make the best of it. 

So, with that said, I hope folks have enjoyed the wave of river-waterfall-cascade images, as that's been the show for the last couple of weeks, but we'll start to change it up next week.  

I've been hugely enjoying exploring the Gauley Canyon NRA over the last few years, a place close to where I grew up, but that was somewhat off-limits due to private ownership when I was young.  I've also had some very interesting conversations with folks that live near the NRA, and what local attitudes and opportunities are relative to the public land and the rules and influence of the National Park Service.  I'll have more to say about that topic in a future post (because we have more images from the Canyon). 

Today's image of Bucklick Branch, a tributary in the heart of the canyon.  I was really excited about this one, as this one had evaded us earlier in the year, and after getting there I would recommend a high clearance vehicle and a good pair of water shoes - this one is not the easiest waterfall to get to or to find.

Hope folks have a nice weekend.

Early Morning At Bucklick Branch - West Virginia

Entrance Rapid - Pennsylvania

Good Tuesday Morning!

I've been doing a lot of reading and research on the rural/urban divide and on how those things may be disproportionately impacting Appalachian communities.

It's easy to see around the region how rural folks may feel unheard and unseen.  The cities drive policy, drive culture, and impact the priorities of the country.  The US Census says that 60% of the people in the US live on 4% of the land area - in the cities. 

The catch is that leaves 40% of the people, and however many may live in the cities and agree with them, that don't see the country through remotely the same lens.  Health care, guns, welfare, policing, and infrastructure, just to name a few, all look very different if you live in Washington DC or Chicago versus if you live in a small town in the middle of the US. 

I bring this up in conjunction with this photo from Ohiopyle as a small example, and an example that we are seeing play out in different towns around the region (such as Davis/Thomas).  Ohiopyle has a permanent population of 59 people, as of the 2010 Census.  I guarantee you that this number is at least 10 times multiplied on any decent weather weekend, and a great many of those visitors are coming down from urban centers, such as Pittsburgh.  Who gets to make the rules?  The 59, or the 500 visitors?

A little something to keep that in mind the next time someone decides to hang their entire argument on "majority rules". 

See y'all on Friday.

Entrance Rapid - Pennsylvania

Totally Free (Holly River) - West Virginia

Good Friday Morning!

In the last stretch of months I've had some thoughts relative to the tensions between locals and outsiders, about the different priorities the states and federal government relative to public lands, and expressing concerns about the health and viability of our public lands generally.  Today, I'm turning toward the outdoor industry more generally.

Did you know that hunting and fishing pays for about 60% percent of funding for state wildlife agencies?  (NPR)  That has been a model that has worked for decades, but is now starting to fall apart, as fewer people hunt and fish.  What has taken the place of folks hunting and fishing are activities like camping, hiking, and, yes, photography. 

The catch is that those activities (camping, hiking, backpacking, cross-country skiing, etc) don't contribute directly in any way to funding public lands maintenance or management.  Matter of fact, the Outdoor Industry Association is proudly against any tax or fee on outdoor products that would go to public lands maintenance or upkeep - they have a whole page dedicated to this position. 

I have a hard time understanding this position, when they have a business built on resources owned by the public, and many of these businesses publicly take a loud stand in advocating for public lands (looking at you, Patagonia).  So, what are these folks that are enjoying the outdoors, but not hunting or fishing, doing to support public lands?  Are they putting their money where their mouth is?  It seems like the answer is "no" in many cases.  I've railed on other visitors and businesses that come to West Virginia and don't really contribute to the local economies, while simultaneously excluding or avoiding the locals, and the outdoor rec folks don't get a pass on this.  

In the end, extraction and exploitation aren't the exclusive hallmark of energy and timber companies.  Trucking in people from outside, adding wear and trash to these places, and then not spending money here isn't much better than an outside energy company doing the same.  We had a lot of outrage about timbering the state parks or drilling the national forest here over the past few years - but I didn't see big checks from any of these outdoor and gear and recreation companies to offset those foregone revenues, and I didn't see any investment from those recreational companies into the state. 

Maybe that's something for the state to think about, a 0.1% excise tax on all outdoor gear sold in the state, to support public lands and wildlife conservation.  I wonder if they would sound like the extractive industries when we talk about severance taxes. 

Today's image from Holly River State Park, arrived at on a good road, walked to on a nice boardwalk, and totally free...

Totally Free (Holly River) - West Virginia

Swimming Hole - West Virginia

Good Tuesday Morning!

We have had a ton of fun exploring the Gauley Canyon, and talking with locals that have lived in the area for a while.  One aspect of conversation that comes up, and one that we have heard in other parts of West Virginia and out West, is an uneasy relationship with the federal government.

Why uneasy?  It generally comes down to a matter of perspective, about whether what the agencies do is fair to the folks that live and work in industries located in the areas impacted by federal lands.  If you live in a rural area near federal lands, maybe you see way more value in a mine or timbering of those resources than in recreation or preservation - because recreation and preservation doesn't pay your bills.    Maybe you pre-date the federal control in a remote area (as is the case in much of the Gauley Canyon), and don't appreciate restrictions on how you can use the roads or the land.  I think this actually gets exacerbated by the "thin-ness" of funds and staff the feds have - if you only see one person a year, and they are a summer-temp, how good is the info you are getting from them, do you really think they are working cooperative with you? 

It's easy to say that whatever benefits the most people should be the answer, when you are the person benefiting.

This tension speaks to a great deal of the chatter about "local control" of public lands versus central control.  Local control may not mean preservation or protection.  Central control may mean that the "little guy" trying to make ends meet gets regulated or bureaucratized until what they do is no longer feasible.   I hope folks will take the time to think about these things; many of them I didn't really think about when I was younger, some I didn't really become aware of until the last few years.  But I think this is just a smaller battleground in the wider urban/rural split that we see through this country - and these issues are going to become more stark and more hostile, if we don't start addressing them. 

How does this relate to today's image?  This waterfall is now part of the Gauley NRA, and so is a public place, on public lands.  Once upon a time, it was held privately, and was a well-loved spot on the river.  Now it is open to all, and owned by all - and was covered in beer cans that I packed out on the day I made this image - in practice it is owned by none, and no one is responsible. 

Hope folks have a great week!

Swimming Hole - West Virginia

Why Do This (Cottle Falls) - West Virginia

Ok guys, we need to talk for a second. 

In the stretch of a weekend, I came across three waterfalls totally littered with trash - and I don't mean "washed in after a high water" trash.  I mean folks who managed to pack the cans in and leave them next to the water, still with drinks in them, or this one - what looks like a set of box springs next to a waterfall.   If this isn't you, now may be a good time to get out of here, cause I'm pretty hot about this one. 

This week, I had some folks asking about "Appalachian Values", and there were several that pitched in with the good - resilience, adaptability, frugality.  Those are true for a lot of people, but the first thing I thought of, for better or worse, was a "taking for granted" of this place.  The opinion that if it's from somewhere else, it's better.  That there is no reason not to dump your trash at a waterfall, because it isn't that special.  It's the kind of thing that caused the state to close down Camp 70, and it happens at numerous other little spots where folks dump trash and don't take care of things (Pringle Run Falls, Wonder Falls, Bull Run, Arden, etc etc). 

A friend of mine wrote me to say that for some people, "all the worlds a dump, if you have to pay for disposal". 

Consider this a "public service announcement", as we head into the kickoff holiday weekend of the summer.  Several years ago, I went down to the Cheat at Jenkinsburg after Memorial Day, and was able to pack a pickup load of trash out.

I'd prefer not to be able to do that this year. 

Hope folks have a great Memorial Day weekend.  (And pack out your trash)

Why Do This (Cottle Falls) - West Virginia

Midweek at Cucumber Falls - Pennsylvania

Good Tuesday Morning!

Today's post is a bit of a callback to my recent "thoughts on wilderness" (haven't seen that?  click here!) write up.  I had the chance to go to Ohiopyle State Park, just north of Morgantown, on a weekday afternoon.  I enjoy Ohiopyle - although it isn't West Virginia, it's still pretty good - but I normally find my way there on weekends, and it always seems terribly busy.  On this day, I rolled into town with gorgeous weather, flowers blooming everywhere, and water in all the creeks - and had it all to myself.

At first this made me very happy, a chance to get some "front country" nature without the people!  But after walking around for a few hours, a new thought dawned on me - are we all "weekend warriors"?  "Living for the weekend"?  This thought made me a bit discouraged for a few reasons.  First off, I love a good days work.  I like contributing in the ways I can - but I would not characterize myself as "living to work" - and yet, sometimes, that's what it feels like we do.  We push all week, watching beautiful days stream by, to flock to woods with everyone else on the weekends - and that's assuming the weather cooperates.  I greatly enjoy my work - so I shudder to think about what this feels like for folks that don't.

I'm not sure what the answers are there, though it's hard for me to believe that we were put here to work and toil at things we don't see value in, to pay taxes and die.  I do think some other countries around the world have it right - more mandatory vacation, if you work overtime you have to take if off as "comp time" - and these are countries with as good a standard of living as we have, so it doesn't seem like they are losing anything in that approach.  

Heavy thoughts on a simple waterfall shot.  

This is Cucumber Falls, at Ohiopyle State Park - and may be my favorite personal capture of this beauty.  Only thing wrong with it is that it's on the wrong side of the border.  ;)

Midweek at Cucumber Falls - Pennsylvania

(Give Me That) Old Time Religion - West Virginia

Good Friday Morning!

Sometimes we find things along the road, on our way from place to place, and say to ourselves "we really should go back there, when we have more time".  Today's image is one of those spots.  A while back, we found our way out to Panther Mountain - along the Gauley River National Recreation Area, on the Nicholas County side of the river.  It was a beautiful part of the state - even in the mid-Winter - with a character that spoke to it's age, and how it was a bit remote - the character still felt old-time and very rural.

We found some beautiful old farm houses, a couple of gorgeous waterfalls, and this church - which we didn't have time to do "right" when we found it.  The Arnet Methodist Church is a classic, old-fashioned, country church - one room, no bathrooms, no basement, just the main nave, with a few incandescent lamps strung across the room, set on stone foundations.  The sign says it was built in 1903, and I wasn't able to find much about it's history in the usual places.  Having grown up in central West Virginia, it wasn't hard to imagine this place during "revival", on a hot summer night, full of people, singing and fanning themselves with their programs - cause I could remember those nights - and these old churches didn't have air conditioning.    

When we first found it, I thought to myself that I really wanted to try and capture it with the night sky - I could almost envision the stars behind it.  When we made our next set of plans to this part of the world, this wasn't a "drive by", it was the destination - and I hope I represented it well.

Hope folks have a great weekend.

(Give me that) Old Time Religion - West Virginia

Crackling - Pennsylvania

Good Tuesday Morning!

As the 2018 political season spins up, it's going to be 6 months of folks spouting bonafides about their views for the region.  For this, against that - we all know it's coming.

I would challenge folks to think less about those red-meat hot-button tactics, and ask the question "but what are you going to do for people that live here?". 

If you are pro-coal, pro-gas, or pro-industry, how is that candidate going to address the impacts of that development in your community?  Do they talk about clean water?  Do they talk about eminent domain?  Do they talk about taxing the activity in a way that brings some much needed funds back to the region?  Do they talk about creating higher value industries from that activity?  Are they talking about education?

If you are pro-environment, pro-renewable, or pro-sustainability, how is your candidate addressing the impacts of those stances in your community?  Are they talking in a realistic way about economic development?  Are they talking in a realistic way about how many people a given approach either employs or displaces?  Are they talking about being inclusive in who gets invited to the "new economy"? 

Folks are going to try to get your vote by making you mad, or making you scared.  I would rather hear about believable solutions, or at least an intelligent framing of the problem - because you can't fix something if you don't understand how it is broken. 

Today's image made me think of all this - standing underneath this crackling transmission line, as I watch electrons stream from West Virginia to the cities out east, I see lost opportunity for the folks that live here - but is it better than nothing? 

Crackling - Pennsylvania

Rhododendron Maximum - West Virginia

Good Friday Morning!

Rhodo.  It was hard for me to imagine that this nearly ubiquitous plant in West Virginia didn't live everywhere when I was a kid.  I imagined that every riverbank or shady hillside everywhere in the world was covered with this stuff, like kudzu, because that's how it grows here.  As it turns out, R. Maximum is a native of Appalachia, and other than garden transplants, doesn't grow anywhere else in the world.

There is something about this that I find both romantic, and almost comically predictable.  A remarkably tough organism that thrives in rocky, shady, acidic places, and comes together in thickets so dense that they were notable impediments to the exploration and passage of these mountains.  That it grows so thick, so impenetrable to outsiders, that they called them "laurel hells".  That all sounds familiar, for some reason. 

Did you know R. Maximum is poisonous to eat?  Did you know honey made from flowers is called "mad honey", because of the compounds in it?  (seriously)

I guess I get into all of this because rhododendron is a character in the story for so many of our adventures - it's the green in our winter images, it's the barrier to our travel (even today), its part of the "smell" of the woods, especially after a rain, and when it blooms on the mountains, there is no denying that it is one of the crown jewels of the forest.

I know that in a few short months, folks will be taking pictures of the blooms (I may be one of them), but in my mind, this is what it looks like.  Wet, glossy, and forever.  Part of this place.

Hope folks have a great weekend! 

Rhododendron Maximum - West Virginia

I've Seen This Once, In A Dream - West Virginia

Good Friday Afternoon!

When I was a youngster, I'd go somewhere beautiful, or that I thought was cool - and I'd have the thought about whether those trees over there, or that rock over there ever got lonely.  Did they look forward to me, or other folks, coming to visit?  There are places so "Warm", so inviting out there, that it always felt like they were waiting for my return.  The "Cave" (a big rock overhang down in woods behind my house); a particular little hemlock stand along the local stream that had given me shelter in both summer and winter from the heat or the wind; finding the remnants of some old farm house - usually marked with a line of flowers in the middle of the woods, or a fruit tree standing in a small clearing, and wondering if they missed me, or the people that had been there and tended the place before. 

I got older, and learned that all of our history here wasn't about tending, or visiting - and maybe, even if they did feel something, that it wasn't a loneliness for our return.  Call it the cynicism of adolescence. 

I was reminded of this on a recent hike, walking a very old railroad grade, in the middle of the beautiful West Virginia mountains - because I had that old feeling and thought - I wonder if this place is glad that the snow is melting, and the people can come back. 

I've been wallering you fine folks with grumpy social media posts, tense enviro-political posts, so today I decided I'd do a bit of reminiscing, and let you guys know about some upcoming stuff.  First up, I hope to get a good-old travel-blog post of that hike up next week.  Secondly, I wanted to make a quick note about my upcoming exhibition at the Apothecary Ale House, "This Is Normal".  As for today's image, this is one of those places that I often think about as being lonely, and wondering when the farmer that lived here might be coming back to cut the hay, and rest in the shade. 

Hope folks have a great weekend, and maybe have the chance to visit one of these old (sometimes, very old!) friends. 

I've Seen This Once, In A Dream - West Virginia

This Is Normal - An Art Exhibition

A bit off our normal schedule today, but wanted to keep talking about a show I'm doing at the Apothecary Ale House, here in Morgantown on 4/24/2018, titled "This Is Normal". 

West Virginia has a complex history of industry, invention, innovation, and living with the outcomes of the technologies and externalities that these bring. The people of this place have adapted to these changes, and have incorporated them into their lives. I find these contrasts in what is ‘”normal” in West Virginia intriguing, and have assembled a collection of images that attempt to speak to this.  Hope to see folks there!

Facebook invite below. 

https://www.facebook.com/events/486777455053726/

Peaceful Night on the Gandy Fork - West Virginia

Good Tuesday Morning!

We, like a lot of folks took advantage of the great weather over the weekend to get out to the woods, get off the grid (no cell service!) and do something that sent us home tired by Sunday night. 

This was the peaceful start to a weekend that I will have a lot to say about over the next stretch of days.  We have had a number of big things come through over the last few weeks - nothing less than some life-changing decisions are on deck for us over the next stretch of months, and the chance to sneak off the woods, cut out the distractions, and be a couple making plans for the future was a must for us. 

We do a pretty good job of staying "centered", and not letting the world "waller" us too bad - and we do our darndest to make things that keep us there a priority.  Carmen and I both thrive on "nature therapy", and getting the wind in our hair and some moving ground under our feet.  We use that time to find our own thoughts, and to talk about them with each other - and that was all this evening was about.  A fire, some drinks in the cooler, and listening to the river with the stars wheeling overhead, talking about...  everything. 

More from this mini-expedition, and a few slivers of "everything" to come, hope folks have a great week. 

Peaceful Night on the Gandy Fork - West Virginia

River Waves - West Virginia

Good Friday Morning!

One of the things that I find most interesting - and also most tricky - about doing some of my work in this state is that its people do not often allow for easy characterization or "political position" pigeonholing relative to the rest of the world.  I have spent a great deal of time being either the "tree hugging hippie" or "the dirty industry guy" depending on the room I am talking with - something that I have started to find almost funny.  We have a long history of being used by outside interests for their gain - not ours - and there are many things about that in our state right now.  These truths lead to very interesting politics, so interesting that I have joked that the differentiators in West Virginia are way more narrow and nuanced than any national debate might have you believe.  Folks that may have no problem with fossil fuel development generally may have a strong opposition to pipeline construction or mountain top removal mining.  Folks that hate opiates and methamphetamines may be strongly for marijuana legalization and against jailtime for drug users.   I've met several "hippies" (complete with tie-dye and long hair) that love hunting and shooting and own AR-15s, and ATV riding coal miners that "won't have a gun in the house".  The common thread here is that folks want things to benefit the PEOPLE THAT LIVE HERE, not the shareholders in New York or the large donors in DC.  We want to be able to feed our families, have stable work, send our kids to good schools, and have the lifestyle of being "with the land" - whether it's hunting or hiking or farming - and we don't see why it has to be one or the other. 

I've started not trusting anyone, on either side, that tells me it must be "all or nothing".  Those folks are people that probably haven't spent much time "walking in someone else shoes" - and probably have a low imagination, because they haven't spent much time thinking about it either.

Today's image felt resonant to me today because of the ripples and the waves - its been tough to find the "flat water" in our culture of late, but fortunately for us, we like these rivers "with the rocks in them". 

River Waves - West Virginia