Down Day

I have taken myself and my distraction into the woods behind my house. I walk on ground that seems undisturbed by human activity.

It’s calming in a way and not helpful in another, as I muse over the current gas drilling accidents, thousands of gallons of carcinogenic chemicals, mixed with water, that have spilled onto and into the ground in Dimock, PA. I imagine this ground, this rocky, wet ground, is not suitable for gas drilling, not like those rolling hills, and pristine farmlands in Susquehanna County that are being carved into five-acre drill sites.

Here, it is bumpy and filled with trees and moraines left over from glaciers long ago. No it’s probably not suitable for gas drilling. Of course, no place really is.

And to that end, I can picture that big machinery coming here. Machinery designed to dig up and move earth in a way that is in accordance to the will of the operator. Machinery that supports the construct of human dominion and our absolute right to destroy and use whatever we want.

It’s not that nature isn’t violent and destructive. Trees lie on their sides, rocks under and in between their roots, which reach skyward. But here, there is a balance of sorts, a stillness, a harmony and a sense of peace. Life and death exists in this moment together. With gas drilling, I see no life side to the equation. The opposite of the destruction, or the death, is excessive energy consumption and the distribution of wealth to multi-global corporations and the large land holder.

You might have gathered that I’m tired, kind of discouraged and in a quandary as to how to inject some sort of measure of environmental responsibility into the mix. I yearn to find something that is compelling enough so that, as human beings understanding our humanness, we decide to protect our best interests, respect the cycles of water, seek sensible alternatives to fossil fuels, and live on the land with a sense of reverence and appreciation.

I took myself and my distractions into the woods behind my house today. I walk on ground that seems undisturbed by human activity. It’s calming in a way and not helpful in another.