On the Nastiness of Nature.
I am a nature lover. Most of you reading this probably know that -- that I have climbed the 2nd-highest active volcano in the world, that I take my coworkers whitewater rafting. Those of you who knew me pre-LJ days probably knew that I have been rock climbing, spelunking, backpacking, climbing, boating, etc. or that I spent half a week living by myself in a cabin in the middle of the woods with no electricity or running water.
What possesses folks like us to do such things? For me personally, I like the thrill and the challenge of such activities, perhaps a feeling of pride at conquering my environment and surviving. But almost all of us will tell you that we find beauty in nature.
Are we blind?
Nature is full of death and decay and disorder. Animals viciously attacking and eating each other -- blood, guts, and gore; pain, cries, and torment. Hordes and infestations of crawling and flying insects laying millions of eggs over and in everything, leaving their sticky and slimy bodies over everything. Rotting plants and leaves and animal defecation abound. Water flows and corrodes the land leaving grimy, bacteria-filled, mold-attracting pools. Lighting sends fire throughout the landscape, leaving charcoal. Volcanoes erupt and bury the land in molten rock.
How is that beautiful?
Nature is nasty.
Yet I still like it. Yet I still find awe in the view from the top of a mountain, from the darkness in a cave, from the roar of river rapids, from the crashing of ocean waves, from the green of tree leaves, from the colors in the fall, from the majesty of tall pines, from the beauty of birds' songs, from the frolicking of deer.
Somehow, in the midst of all the nastiness, I find beauty. I do not deceive myself. Some do. Some seem to think nature is better in all ways, that we should return to nature. I don't think so. I see corruption and nastiness in the uses of technology as well, but my ideal world would be a mix of natural and technological, the latter to tame or tend to -- in a protective manner -- the wildness of nature.
But the best of both worlds is, sadly, rarely possible.
What possesses folks like us to do such things? For me personally, I like the thrill and the challenge of such activities, perhaps a feeling of pride at conquering my environment and surviving. But almost all of us will tell you that we find beauty in nature.
Are we blind?
Nature is full of death and decay and disorder. Animals viciously attacking and eating each other -- blood, guts, and gore; pain, cries, and torment. Hordes and infestations of crawling and flying insects laying millions of eggs over and in everything, leaving their sticky and slimy bodies over everything. Rotting plants and leaves and animal defecation abound. Water flows and corrodes the land leaving grimy, bacteria-filled, mold-attracting pools. Lighting sends fire throughout the landscape, leaving charcoal. Volcanoes erupt and bury the land in molten rock.
How is that beautiful?
Nature is nasty.
Yet I still like it. Yet I still find awe in the view from the top of a mountain, from the darkness in a cave, from the roar of river rapids, from the crashing of ocean waves, from the green of tree leaves, from the colors in the fall, from the majesty of tall pines, from the beauty of birds' songs, from the frolicking of deer.
Somehow, in the midst of all the nastiness, I find beauty. I do not deceive myself. Some do. Some seem to think nature is better in all ways, that we should return to nature. I don't think so. I see corruption and nastiness in the uses of technology as well, but my ideal world would be a mix of natural and technological, the latter to tame or tend to -- in a protective manner -- the wildness of nature.
But the best of both worlds is, sadly, rarely possible.