Nature's Call: How Our National Parks Inspired a Deeper Connection with the Environment

 Written By Ken Hulsey

If you have been following this blog over the past few months, you have likely seen several posts about how much Terri and I have enjoyed watching documentaries about our nation's breathtaking natural parks. If you're interested in starting to explore these documentaries yourself, I recommend beginning with Ken Burns' PBS documentary, The National Parks: America's Best Idea. In this series, you will learn how each park was chosen for preservation and the significant roles that influential figures like John Muir and Teddy Roosevelt played in their development. Like Terri and me, you will likely find yourself captivated by the stunning scenery and nature footage.

These documentaries and my own adventures in nature have inspired me to become a naturalist. Additionally, my decades of work in the environmental science field have also influenced this decision. Certainly, everyone can agree that our natural lands and resources need to be managed and protected. It should be noted that from my experiences, many people claim to care about the environment. They will tell you that they care, promise to act responsibly, then moments after you leave, pour a barrel of used oil into the river. I know it sounds far-fetched, but I've actually had to write companies up for stuff like that over and over during my career. Unfortunately, the government agencies that are responsible for monitoring things like that are understaffed and underfunded, so people just keep on doing irresponsible things. Since the government can't, or won't, do anything, it's up to us to do our part.

To that effect, I believe that all of us should change our mindset about nature and the environment. To be honest, we all take our natural scenery and resources for granted. This leads me to the photograph that I featured along with this article. It's a shot that I took of the Sandia Mountains in New Mexico way back in the 1980s. As I recall, I pulled over on the highway to capture the snow-covered peaks. Interestingly enough, as any resident of Albuquerque knows, the Sandias are an ever-present sight to behold for anyone who lives there. For 13 years of my life, every time I walked out the door, all I had to do was look east and there they were. It is a spectacular view. Thinking back upon my life in Albuquerque, I realized that I took that view of those majestic mountains for granted. They just became part of my everyday life, and I never thought that much about it. Watching those documentaries stirred up something that had been dormant inside me for decades, I suppose. Being a photographer, I started searching through my images for any image that I might have of the Sandias. To my surprise, I couldn't find one. In those 13 years in Albuquerque, I never snapped a photo of those mountains. The only image that I could find was the one above, and that image was taken somewhere along the highway between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, not inside the city itself. I took it so much for granted that I never even took a picture of it. 

I find that sad, and honestly disappointing.

So here I am living in the flat, wooded area of central Louisiana, longing for a mountain view. I quote John Muir:

“The mountains are calling, and I must go.”

I don't know when I'll get a chance to go back to the Southwest and experience its beauty again, but I'm going to start planning a trip as soon as Terri and I are able. We both miss the mountains, and watching documentaries about the beauty of Northern California and Montana has had a soul-inspiring influence on both of us.

“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn.”
― John Muir, The Mountains of California

Yes, we both need to experience that again.

Alas, that is for a future time; today, I want to start focusing more on the natural beauty here in Louisiana. I want to become more focused on its preservation and conservation. There has been a disturbing change in the political climate here in this state. Honestly, there has always been a poor political climate here in Louisiana when it comes to the environment. The petrochemical industry has turned the area along the Mississippi into a toxic wasteland known as "Cancer Alley" while the state has turned a blind eye. The reason for this is, of course, money, and that same greed has led to a flood of data centers being built here. Natural lands and water resources are now being gobbled up, and residents are not happy about any of it. Unfortunately, public outcry is doing virtually nothing to ebb any of it. The truth is, money talks, and the residents of Louisiana may be forced to walk- that is, search for greener pastures. Regardless, that shouldn't mean that everyone just sits by and takes it. We should all keep trying. 

At this point, I'm still not certain what becoming a true naturalist entails, but I'm excited to find out. I, of course, will be writing extensively about my experiences, so if you have been enjoying my posts up to this point, you should be looking forward to more going forward. Hopefully, by sharing such experiences, you too will become inspired to enjoy nature and the environment with a newfound zeal.