Montana and Thoughts on the City

I am still fascinated by the rich history that surrounds Montana and much of the west. I'm re-reading some parts of Undaunted Courage now that I'm here. Have you ever been to a place that has such a rich history that it's almost as if you can actually feel the energy of the past? Thats the feeling I get being here because while a lot has been developed in this state, a lot (in comparison to much of the rest of the country) has remained the same. You can look at something like a natural hot spring and know that it has been around for a very long time. I love to think of all the people who have come before me in the very same spot. Who stood on this very ground before me? Who footsteps do mine embrace with each step? I love it. This is the very least of the connection that we have to each other. Because what are the chances that you will step exactly where someone else stepped? Well, with so many people on this earth the chances are pretty good but still... what are the chances that your footsteps will lay exactly on this one particular person's?

I feel that when you live close to the earth, you put your energy into it, and it's almost as it it gets captured and stored. And then those who come after you feel this energy, this life, and don't realize its source. When you live in an area with lower population density and access to natural environments you interact diffierently with the world. It's not the same as walking through a city, surrounded by carbon-neutral buildings but finding no real semblance of the real place in which you are walking. By place I mean the natural formation and landscape of the area. Even Central Park, as beautiful as it is, is engineered to fit what the tree-loving city-dweller would need in their life. And when thats the only nature you see, you miss out on all of the other amazing ecosystems.... grasslands, wetlands, desert, sub-alpine forests, etc. There is just city and then there is "nature." I'm not saying that is wrong. I am merely questioning the legitimacy of a city-dweller's experience in life without knowing what this earth is really made of. It certainly isn't pavement. I'm also just exploring the thoughts that I have about life as I contemplate where I will live. If it didn't take 2 plane rides to get to my parent's house in New York I would definitely stay here in Montana. I hope that at some point in their lives, everyone gets the chance to visit or live in their "Montana." A part of my doesn't want anyone else to go to Montana though because people are starting to realize how amazing it is. Unfortunately, that materializes itself in their destroying it through developments and sub-developments. How ironic that in our quest to better experience something we have to damage or destroy it. I think that really says something about the way we live and view life. Something to ponder.