If It's Good Enough For The Grizzly...

Age is a funny thing. I don't dwell on the idea of getting older very much, but now and then it just kind of pops into my head. On the one hand, in my mind's eye I'm still the dashing young chap that I was 30 years ago, though all it takes to put the lie to that illusion is a glance in the mirror. Or at my drivers license. It says that I was born 57 years ago this coming May. How can that be? On the other hand, young as I may feel, the realization sets in that this ride won't last forever. I'm not expecting to wake up dead anytime soon, but the fact is that I'm on the downhill side. Of course I have no way of knowing for sure, but it's probably a pretty safe bet to say I have a couple of good decades left in me, give or take. So what to do with it? Suddenly 20 years doesn't seem like such a long time.

I'm not complaining here, or feeling down about it at all. Far from it. I've lived the life I chose to live and it's been good, and I'm not done yet. I wouldn't trade places with anyone. I was never interested in money or wealth or stuff, so I never pursued it. I've lived my life being what would be called 'poor', though I've never felt poor. I've just never had much money. I still feel that way -- I'm about the richest person I know. I have everything I could possibly think of that I might need. I just don't have much money. I have enough though. I've spent much time roaming the wilderness, much time simply wandering freely, and the experiences I've had, even the unpleasant ones, mean far more to me than mere money ever could. But all of that is the past.

What about those next 20 years, or however many it turns out to be? What will I do with those? I'll probably slow down in some ways, and probably pick up speed in others. I'm not as footloose as I once was, but that's OK. I'm a single parent of a daughter who will become one of those teenagers in about a week. I enjoy it immensely, and will work on being the best parent I can be. Wilderness has been a major driving force in my life and will continue to be so. I will try to pass on a small part of what this wild earth has given me over the years. Photography has been an important part of my life and will remain so. Activism too. I will fight for what I believe in though I may be a little more selective of the fights I get involved in. One thing I've noticed as I get older is that I am far more jealous of my time. I won't waste any more than is necessary on things I don't care all that much about. At the same time, I won't be afraid to try new things that I want to try. I may fail miserably, I may make a complete fool of myself, but I don't care. At this point in my life I simply don't care what others think of me or what I do. I don't want to have to look back and ask myself why I didn't try.

For better or worse, I'll continue doing these blogs. By sheer accident I landed here in blogworld a couple of years back and have been a more or less permanent fixture ever since. I'll keep doing it. I've never fancied myself a writer, this post is no doubt the longest thing I've ever written, but I guess that's what blogging is to one degree or other. Writing. I do this mostly for myself, but occasionally someone may come across something of interest to them here, and that's good. Above all, I've learned over the years that I can't postpone doing what I need and want to do. I have to live it now. When you're younger you can put things off for a while without worrying about it much, but I'm at a point now where I don't have time for procrastination. I need to make my life count now. So I will continue to defend the wilderness and defy those who would grab at it with greedy fingers for their own gain. I will fight for causes I believe in. I will do photography that I believe in. I will raise a good kid. And when my time on this big wild beautiful earth is over I'll be able to look myself in the eye, give a big old goofy grin and say alright kid. It was a good life. But like I said, I'm not done yet.

Now and then around the lunch table at work I like to throw out a remark like 'if a place is good enough for the grizzly, it's good enough for me' just to gauge the reaction. It's usually good for a few moments of great hilarity and then everyone goes back to work chuckling. They think I'm kidding. But I'm not. I'm not kidding and I'll say it again. Boldly. If a place is good enough for the grizzly it's good enough for me. Montana still fits the bill, and I'll do my damndest to help keep it that way.

Enjoy...

Seeing as I'll be busy with other projects, I'm going to put this photo up here again to sort of dress up this page because this post will stay up for a while.


















This one too.















These are but a couple of the reasons I've chosen to live in this part of the country. My lone, puny voice may mean little. It probably doesn't do much good, but I'll use it anyway to stand up to the forces of industrialized man. And I'll be as loud as I can. As far as I'm concerned this is the real world, and I'm adamantly opposed to it's further destruction.

Here are yet a few more words from the immortal Edward Abbey:

God bless America. Let's save some of it.

Enjoy folks -- enjoy life. Enjoy the gradual coming of spring. Enjoy the wild. Laugh and love and live and learn. I'll be back soon.