The Spring Mountains ECHO

THINK LIKE A MOUNTAIN

By Bob Maichle

Those that have read this column know that I believe that almost any soul exposed to the wonders of nature will gain an appreciation of and new insight into the meaning of this complexity we call our Earth. Sadly, I concede that the majority of Americans have not been sufficiently exposed to the mountain. These people often place material wealth above natural enlightenment.

Henry David Thoreau described this human condition when he wrote ". . . most men, it seems to me, do not care for Nature and would sell their share in all her beauty, as long as they may live, for a stated sum." There are those self-claimed enlightened environmentalists who holding such materialistic people in contempt one minute and then feel overcome by the multitudes the next. There is the often stated lament that since the majority of Americans have a primary concern for better jobs, temporal gratification and acquiring more possessions, it is useless to oppose the inevitable. Those that cite such numbers as an excuse not to enlighten and protect do not understand the concept of thinking like a mountain. We, as the only sentient component of the mountain have an obligation to enlighten and protect.

Exposure to the mountain which will lead to an understanding of the land will reduce the majority to a few. The real danger is that in these few, there are those that would cut the last tree, sacrifice the last of a species, and plunder the earth without regard for the land or the future. The burden must fall on the shoulders of those that think like a mountain. The danger that can stem from the actions of a few does pose a significant risk to the many.

There exists much within the land that we need to survive. Those that would plunder the land are a real threat to all of us. Thoreau concluded that ". . . it is for the very reason that some do not care for those things we need to continue . . . " [that our efforts should be] "to protect all from the vandalism of the few." We must recognize our duty to enlighten the masses and accept the responsibility to be vigilant and prepared to oppose those who by their actions would threaten our future. Those that think like a mountain will not be daunted by the numbers ". . . who do not care for Nature . . . " The more overwhelmed, the harder we must strive. The more of the multitudes we can expose to the beauty of the mountain, the easier our task will be. Those that seek to think like a mountain will seek their share of the beauty, will share their understanding of the land, and will strive to defend the land from those misguided few who would destroy it.