Thursday, May 6, 2010

I just spent a brief time away from the city. I cannot explain how good it felt to leave behind the urban noise, crowds, traffic and pace of life for the open spaces and different paces of the country. And I was way, way out in the country. I was in northeastern Montana. Now, considering that I grew up in a rural area, it is with great emphasis that I say that the area I visited was very rural.

I loved it.

There is nothing more liberating than space. Plenty of room to make noise, be crazy, get wild and cut loose. But being out in the country surrounded by the perfect system of nature is liberating. The air is clear and the land is open. And yet with the freedom of the land I realize that there is also an element of danger, because the land thrives and survives when it is fed by those who live in it. We can start compost heaps and give back to the land or we can become the compost which feeds the land and the animals that share it with us. Perhaps this sounds a bit morbid but to me it is also an exciting thought. It helps me remember that we need to make the most of our time on earth because sooner or later we will become part of it once again.

On my brief getaway I saw mountains, river bottoms, prairie, canyons created by wind and water, a giant manmade dam and the lake it created, and so much more. The night I saw the stars they dazzled me with blinking intensity; the morning sun was intense and orange when it rose over the horizon. Several mornings snow was blowing and collecting on the ground in a reminder that the western spring comes both later and with even more unpredictable power than it does on the coast. I reveled in being able to turn around 360 degrees and see only one building- at least 30 miles in the distance. I worried that if something happened to me out in such as vast landscape nobody might notice or find me before it was too late. But when surrounded by so much beauty, the danger seems as irrelevant as it is palpable.

One day, while taking a tour of a cattle ranch I saw several horses chasing a coyote off of their territory. It was exciting to see. One sometimes thinks of horses as defenseless animals an there, in front of me, were three horses running after the lone coyote in order to defend their territory. The next evening I went to bed to the sound of several coyotes howling nearby as the ranch's border collies barked and yowled and kept the predators at bay. I loved the sounds and fell asleep wonderfully tired and eager for the next day.

It is great to go somewhere and see all sorts of wild animals, and I saw antelope, coyotes, mule deer, elk, whitetail deer, jackrabbits, gophers, grouse, pheasants and hawks. I also loved knowing that those animals were all struggling for their place in the land and that I was as well. One great thing about leaving the city is that the idea of life and death becomes , closer, clearer, more eminent; Country people are more open about the reality that beings live and die. I don't mean that they are wiser or smarter or better, but there always seems to me a greater acceptance of the transience of life in the country than in the city. In cities the concrete walls and paved streets obscure the softness of the ground and the motion of the sky. Trees are corralled and grass is limited. And people treat pets like family members and expect family members to live forever. I dislike the dishonesty and the focus on preciousness.

What is precious is being here, alive, and being able to take part in this great continuing cycle. What is silly is thinking that a person is better off treating their pet like a family member or every sunrise like a miracle or their reaching old age as a right. We should remember that our pets, like us, are animals and like living and would possibly eat us if it meant that they would live. We should remember that the sun will rise tomorrow regardless of what we do (sorry, Aztecs) but that is no reason no to appreciate it. Enjoy those sunrises! We should remember that we all age but not equally and not all to the same end point. Sure, trying to make our lives go on as far as possible is a noble idea but we need to remember that life is filled with dangers, accidents, inequalities and leaves us the freedom to make satisfying if poor choices- yes, fry that and add butter to the baked potato- but we'd be worse off if we couldn't make those choices.

What does all this have to do with my trip? I'm not actually sure. I believe that I've rambled a bit but I know that the next time I hear another commercial harping about antioxidents or see a person carrying a tiny dog wearing a sweater I'll chuckle a bit more than usual.