Salt Creek Prairie
A failure to see connections is really the largest culprit. Science is not a necessary component of this. Science has and continues to expand human understanding on certain levels, but not all. There is much room for the development of a custodial relationship with the world. When the World becomes as a sacred artifact to... Continue Reading →
on dragonflies, a carcass, and beavers
There be beavers in Salt Creek. He found evidence as he was ambling along this past Saturday. Downed trees and stumps chewed to a fine and tapered point. Another tree, still standing, which was a work in progress. Where they make their home is anybody's guess. He didn't see a lodge, but he didn't spend... Continue Reading →
Notes from the Porkies: Part 1
To Deet, or not to Deet...is not really the question, but to suffer the nuisance of roving bands of mosquitoes, or dowse yourself in chemical repellants, is at least a matter for consideration. Actually, it’s an absolute imperative, and walking into the first leg of our three day adventure into Michigan’s Porcupine Mountain Wilderness State... Continue Reading →
finding time at Willow Springs Woods
8/21 Into the woods with the family. Willow Springs Woods in South Cook County. First time here, and I’m learning that it’s important to go and scope these places out ahead of time, or else you find yourself wandering aimlessly trying to decide on a place to sit. Which was what happened my first morning... Continue Reading →
Remember: stillness, silence and taking time to take the time.
the land ethic – part 3
8/28 - S.C.A. 239 Land as community, when this idea “penetrates our intellectual life”, the land ethic will come to enlarge the notion of community to include soils, waters, plants, and animals: the land. This is a key point to keep in mind: that often, when we consider the land, we think only of the... Continue Reading →
the land ethic – part 2 (notes from the steno pad)
8/27 *see steno. If little birds hold the secrets of living, then I feel we may be missing something. and we should listen closely. This morning I want to think more about an ethic, limitation on action, and economy...how does this relate back to how we relate to the land. So I consult my favorite... Continue Reading →
the land ethic – part 1
What is a land ethic? Aldo Leopold considered an ethic, in ecological terms, as a “limitation on freedom of action in the struggle for existence.” An ecological ethic limits our action upon the land...in our struggle for existence. But our struggle for existence has shifted, and is no longer so much a struggle against the... Continue Reading →
sittinginthewoods 