Response

Response to owning the landscape.

I have to admit I was skeptical about taking a class based on Emerson, Thoreau and others who write about nature. My first real experience with nature writing was in my 11^th grade English class. Our teacher’s ideas of experiencing nature extended to physically hugging a tree and keeping a journal about it. Let’s just say this did not sit well with me at the time. High school, in my experience, was a time for technology. I got my first cell phone, first car, first laptop and more. I was not interested in going for hikes or walks in the woods. I didn’t care about how beautiful the lake appeared as the light from the stars sparkled off the calm surface of the water. I think back to those days and wish I had appreciated what the outdoors had and continues to have to offer. I feel that as we have gotten older we become more aware of the simple beautiful things nature has to offer us.

I enjoyed Rebecca’s perspective on land, especially the separation between viewing the land you own up close and personal and then looking at it from a broad perspective. When seen from a broad perspective, at least in Maine, it is like a glimpse of history. That is perhaps one of my favorite things about going for a hike or walk in the woods. From the top of the mountain as Rebecca says you see the land as a whole. The fields and the forests are interconnected and criss-crossed and spotted with lakes and rivers. In the fields the stonewalls are the remnants of property and field lines are the last sentries of another age when we lived with nature not just in nature. These are some of the things I’ve learned as I’ve gotten older. As Rebecca mentioned not everyone’s experiences are the same and often times they are not. But I feel it is important that everyone bridge the gap between their ideas of nature and what nature really is. And some may be able to do it more easily than others but if one takes the time nature really can offer a lot.