Sossusvlei, Namibia
1975, my ninth year, was one of those critical life-assessment years. I was faced with the reality that my classmates and I would soon be experiencing puberty together. The indignities of adulthood would absolutely bear down on the sweet weightlessness of our childhood, everything would change.
Ms. Kurtz’s science class also had a big impact. She was a woman of the 70’s. Her square-toed wedges and poly blouses with geometric patterns reflected her upbeat and quirky attitude. That year she explained environmental degradation to us. Industrial outputs and individual consumption were changing the planet so quickly that our class would witness ecosystems collapsing, certainties emphasized by colorful forecasting charts. Many of my life decisions have been based on Ms. Kurtz’s 1975 lesson plans.
We see that the environmentalists and scientists of the 1970s were right to be alarmed. Open wild spaces are mortally threatened today, yet those are the areas that are critical to our psyche and our physical well-being. Conservationists work to protect planet Earth and her biodiversity; we make personal and professional choices with the future of the natural world in mind. Conservationists are generally optimistic but truthful too.
Spending the day outdoors, riding my bicycle, these activities allowed my passage through adolescence. As a 21rst century adult, the joy I experience in nature is still my steadying force. I am always thrilled to share my enthusiasm for wild spaces with friends or am happy to go it alone. Taking the opportunity to be outdoors for a day or maybe a fortnight, allowing yourself to be lost in nature, these experiences provide the balance our bodies crave. Try it you’ll like it. *
*Copy of 1970’s Alka Seltzer TV advertisement.
Namib Desert, Nambia
