beyond the beauty carved here, a story, tracing an imbalanced past
There is an ancient desert wisdom that dwells here on the western slope of the arroyo hondo, where fallen Piñons lay scattered around Ones hoping to tower someday. Perhaps that is why i keep coming back here, this place where the stories of desert living are told by Piñons.
Tracing my fingers along the intricate carvings covering the branches of my beloved Friend, dancing even in death Piñon, i know these markings tell a story not of beauty but imbalance. They are past remnants of the Ips Bark Beetle whose artistry slowly led to the death of this Piñon and others surrounding Her. Ips Bark Beetles in and of themselves are not harmful but rather helpful in sustaining forest ecosystems, decomposing old wood and contributing to the necessary cycle of death and life. However, when whole Piñon-Juniper Woodlands are drought stressed, exacerbated by the imbalance caused by human created climate change, these Sacred Piñons have no way to protect themselves from the onslaught.
Like the Ips Bark Beetle, we humans, too, are a crucial species in helping to maintain and care for Earth’s ingenious ecosystems. But instead we continue to carve into an already battered land (battered by us), blasting away whole Mountains, drilling and pounding and robbing and repeatedly raping the Earth of all Her resources for the sake of… profit? greed? subduing the Wild?
i speak now to the Bureau of Land Management regarding their plan to lease land for fracking here in New Mexico. When we have the technology and resources for clean energy, why create plans to continue the rape of sacred lands knowing full well it will only exacerbate the climate crisis destroying the very places you claim to protect and value? Why plan to lease land in the Greater Chaco Region so it can be desecrated by fracking? Is our legacy to leave behind a carved out planet causing our own demise?
The story carved in the branches of this Beloved Piñon may be our human story. It does not have to be.
What actions might you take today to change this story? How might we restore and restory our relationship with the land and belonging as part of the Whole Earth Community?
If you live in New Mexico, visit Frack Off Greater Chaco to learn more about fracking and to submit comments opposing the Bureau of Land Management’s plans.
