When despair grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting for their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
— Wendell Berry, The Peace of Wild Things
While these warmer spring temperatures are appreciated by everyone, myself included, the extreme temperature swing from a horrifically cold winter to an unseasonably warm (and snowless) March are undeniable effects of global climate change. Every spring hike this season will no doubt be tinged by this undercurrent of fear at the future state of the environment.
Read MoreTwo weeks ago, the Midwest was plunged into the newest polar vortex. While you read about Chicago setting train tracks on fire and Lake Michigan freezing, Minnesota was dealing with 40 mph+ winds, -35 degree temperatures, and -55 degree windchills. It was so cold that perfectly functioning cars with brand new batteries weren’t starting, and MSU, Mankato cancelled classes two days in a row. The only thing that compelled me to leave our apartment was to run my car for thirty minutes to keep the battery alive.
Read MoreMy favorite thing about this park is that it is home to a bison herd. Back when the American plain bison were nearly hunted to extinction, conservation groups like those at Minneopa stepped in to create herds in order to save the species and protect the ecosystem. Minneopa's herd both lends to the conservation of a magnificent creature and helps maintain the prairie landscape.
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