Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
p <br />t.uauy re- <br />process <br />f~ <br />for the p ~ of us v <br />me at we are see kc~k ~ <br />s or species, <br />of mere monet <br />seeking to protect the disse ' <br />mation-through the often hidde <br />humans make each time they walls in _ , ' - <br />ten to a stream, inhale the aroma deep within ared- <br />woodforest, or feel the snow upon their brow These <br />connections between human beings and their world <br />generate energy that sustains the living universe. <br />When you understand this, it becomes ludicrous <br />to think of a park in the context of the current eco- <br />nomic paradigm; it becomes ludicrous to assume <br />that parks can be priced and purchased in the mar- <br />ketplace. We must not subordinate the very creative <br />for . o e u , to a. system that is simply one <br />s u `.~ To do so,eatens to <br />ou'~'~ks, or that parks will be commercialized. <br />at people fear, and rightly so, is not simply that <br />s - ,parking, or guidebooks will cost too <br />_ they fear the loss of the human con- <br />' the creative force of life itself. <br />moment about how your own expe- <br />have shaped you. How have you grown and <br />,.: v ~ y ` con ness? How have you become <br />o ? is: through connections. <br />- ur pazents, with your fam- <br />' t with the world around <br />trip, or a walk in the <br />e first time. You felt <br />n your face. You test- <br />- p or an azduous hike. <br />e cess by which an individual <br />erirut not only the re-creation of the <br />dually the creation of and move- <br />' e nsciousness. The boxer George <br />Fo ded for a life of crime in Houston <br />when, at eighteen, he joined the Job Corps. He was <br />transferred to Grants Pass in Oregon. Looking back <br />on the experience yeazs later he said, "I'd never seen <br />streams and all the beautiful trees. It changed my <br />life, and for the first time I saw there was another <br />part of the world." <br />It may be azgued by some that everything has its <br />price, and that if something is of value it can be <br />bought; and further that many of our most valuable <br />lands have been bought for a price. I submit that <br />that is a perversion, and it ought not be. Just as we <br />do not place a monetary value on our children, our <br />spouses, or our freedom, we should not place a <br />monetary value on our natural and cultural re- <br />sources. Some things are just too precious. • <br />~a co ,mat only <br />~ 't ex- ~D, " ld is the author of several books and the <br />'` f te; or of California State Parks. <br />~ ~ ~~y " <br />;__~. ~: <br />. ~~,. `j~- _ ~ ' -~ ° Summer 1998.31 <br />51 <br />