John Muir

John Muir—Silence—Grand Canyon

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“And where better to grasp in one panoramic sweep the reality of time and change but on the rim of the Grand Canyon, the world’s greatest geological gash?” – “The Thread Of Life,” by Roger Lewin.

GRAND CANYON is also, arguably, the greatest page of biological history and therefore the greatest biological “laboratory” on planet Earth. After reading the adventures of John Muir in the Grand Canyon in our advanced biology class “Sean” commented, “obviously, we ‘have to go there to know there’.” I eagerly agreed, but replied that the financial and logistical limitations of flying 30 high school biology students 1100 miles to Grand Canyon would be insurmountable. However, Muir and Sean planted a seed and through an amazing series of synchronicities, the next year’s Class flew to Grand Canyon on a glorious, 6-day trip with Muir as our guide. Not only that, 14 more successive classes had the extreme privilege of hiking to the bottom of “The Incomparable Canyon” and spending two nights at Phantom Ranch.

John Muir was his own biggest critic. When he muttered, “These dead bony words rattle in one’s teeth… I can’t get a reasonably likeable picture off my hands…” he was lamenting the fact that spiritual events and awareness cannot be translated into spoken or written words.

He was probably referring to Yosemite, however if he were referring to Grand Canyon his task would have become exponentially more difficult.

Therefore it should not be surprising that perhaps his most cogent assessment of Grand Canyon involved silence rather than words.

Excerpt: “John Muir—Steep Trails,” edited by Wade Naney.

“I have observed scenery-hunters of all sorts getting first views of yosemities, glaciers, White Mountain ranges, etc. Mixed with the enthusiasm, which such scenery naturally excites, there is often weak gushing, and many splutter aloud like little waterfalls. Here, for a few moments at least, there is silence, and all are in dead earnest, as if awed and hushed by a earthquake.”

Muir was aware that as magnificent as Yosemite Valley was it was typically emotionally manageable. Visitors were prone to engage in exultant chatter, each eager to share what she/he was experiencing. This kind of behavior is practically non-existent on the rim of the Grand Canyon. As visitors approach the rim, idle chatter wanes until nearly all standing on the brink of the massive chasm, stand in stunned silence. When they turn to leave, many probably agree with the poet who penned;

“The only thing God left out of the Grand Canyon was the words to describe it.”

Unlike Dorothy facing the curtain hiding The Great Oz, there is no curtain blocking the view and visitors are invited to be swallowed up in the Great Mystery.

One year, one of the better writers in The Class, missed the essay due-date and tearfully suggested that I should give her a failing grade. She mentioned that she had made numerous attempts, but the experience was too overwhelming to process. I assured her that I was not interested in failing her and that she should press on.

Four days later she arrived before school looking exhausted, but with a radiant smile. She described bolting out of bed at 1:00 AM and writing for six uninterrupted hours.

Her first draft was beautifully organized, nearly letter-perfect and needed only a few minor changes. When she presented her paper she described walking on The Canyon floor and feeling intensely claustrophobic as if the walls were pressing in on her. When she passed an Anasazi ruin she felt a deep sense of foreboding and that she did not belong there.

Intriguingly, her Canyon experience proved to be sharply antithetical to her earlier Half Dome experience. It’s little wonder that she was perplexed. Muir would have loved the dichotomy and Carl Sandburg presaged her confusion. While watching a sunset over Grand Canyon, he mused:

‘There goes God with an army of banners;
who is God and why; who am I and why?
He told himself, This may be
something else than what I
see when I look—how do I know?
For each man sees himself
in the Grand Canyon,
each one makes his own Canyon
before he comes, each one brings
and carries away his own Canyon—
Who knows? And how do I know?
 

“Sean” was correct. We had to “go there to know there,” however, in the case of Grand Canyon, going there does not necessarily mean knowing there. When tourists read the informational plaque that states that the Vishnu Schist rock formation at the bottom is 1.8 thousand-million years old, most brains flash; “Warning! Data-entry-overload! Try again.”

Many of the students agreed with Muir; the most logical response to The Canyon is silence.

When they were composing their post-Canyon-essays, it was common for them to use “Jonah-esque” metaphors involving being ingested by some mysterious being, power, or process and then being egested on the third day as transformed beings.

As for me, I felt like Melville’s “Ishmael” and was supremely blessed to have been a witness for 15 years and see Grand Canyon through the eyes of over 400 very bright, curious and impressionable students. Certainly, none of this would likely have occurred without John Muir and my student/teacher “Sean.” I owe them both a huge spiritual debt of gratitude.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

 

John Muir—Professor Butler—Kything

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The word “kything” became more widely known in 1973 when Madeleine L’Engle published, A Wind in the Door. Evidently she was looking for a term that described soul-to-soul communion and found the word, “kythe” in an 1856 Scottish Dictionary. I was elated by the glorious synchronicity that, although I don’t recall John Muir ever using the word “kythe,” he experienced an intense mystical event that evinced the etymology of the Gaelic-born word.

Excerpt: My First Summer In The Sierra, John Muir.

“August 2—Sketching all day on the North Dome until four or five o’clock in the afternoon, when I was busily employed thinking only of the glorious Yosemite landscape, trying to draw every tree and every line and feature of the rocks, I was suddenly, and without warning, possessed with the notion of my friend, Professor J.D. Butler, of the State University of Wisconsin, was below me in the valley, and I jumped up full of the idea of meeting him, with almost startling excitement as if he had touched me to make me look up.

August 3—Had a wonderful day. Found Professor Butler as the compass needle finds the pole. So last evening’s telepathy, transcendental revelation, or whatever else it may be called was true; for strange to say, he had just entered the valley by way of the Coulterville Trail and was coming up the valley past El Capitan when his presence struck me. Had he then looked toward the North Dome with a good glass when it came into sight, he might have seen me jump up from my work and run toward him. This seems the one well-defined marvel of my life of the kind called supernatural…”

I had never heard the term “kything” before 1988 when my soul-mate-wife gifted me with a copy of, Kything: The Art of Spiritual Presence, co-authored by Louis Savary and Patricia Berne.

The book grabbed my full attention, as the authors explored various methods of spiritual communication, however, I found it intriguing when they stated what “kything” is not. They asserted that kything is not mental telepathy, not an imaginary conversation, not channeling and surprisingly, not necessarily a religious experience.

They described it as the “Art of Spiritual Awareness,” whereby two souls can commune in perfect harmony without words. The idea may be based on the concept of “Oneness.” Apparently, applying the concept puts a person “in kythe” with that which he/she is concentrating on. Kything is portrayed as a way to be present with others without regard to space or time. The practice is waning in Scotland and is practically unknown in the US.

The book became a milestone epiphany for me. The concept was provocative and exciting. Even though the Bible is quite clear about the prognosis of life after death, most Christians are understandably often a bit unclear on the mystery. But the ancient Scotts seemed to be convinced that soul communion was quite natural among the living as well as the deceased. Savary and Berne provided a splendid challenge for me.

In the early years of Biodesign, we had experienced many mystical Jungian synchronicities at Yosemite, but I did not imagine that I was “kything” with the holy ghost of John Muir. However, if what they were claiming were true, it seemed as if that was a real possibility.

Over the years after discovering the book, I made a conscious effort to invoke the soul of Muir on our Yosemite trips. I did not have a “Professor Butler” epiphany, but there were countless events that Muir would have called, “supernatural.”

garyhartblog.com

One year, just before we left on our Yosemite trip, I got a little heady and foolishly boasted to the class that we would see a rainbow. I rued my arrogance for five days until on the last day when a glorious rainbow arched above us. We stood in awe-struck silence. After a few minutes, one of the boys edged over and whispered, “OK, how’d you know?”

I humbly shook my head in denial and said, “I didn’t, and I won’t make that mistake again.”

One class was sitting in the dark in a magical circle on top of Half Dome. We enjoyed a 360-degree view under a brilliant canopy of stars. The students were sharing journal reflections, prose, hopes and dreams in perfect sincerity. Suddenly, the whole Class seemed to be raised to a higher level of spiritual awareness. They conjured up Black Elk’s message:

“Then I was standing on the highest mountain of them all, and round about beneath me was the whole hoop of the world. And while I stood there I saw more than I can tell and understood more than I saw; for I was seeing in a sacred manner…”

Photo: NASA

The next day one of the chaperones approached me with a solemn countenance and said, “I have never seen anything like that.” I agreed without suggesting that it could have been an extraordinary example of group kything.

Whether Muir’s spirit was present cannot be proved, however, the need for proof of an act of kything seems utterly oxymoronic.

Muir was too modest and shy to even imagine that his soul could remain hovering about Yosemite for eternity, but the possibility has become very real to the thousands of people who have “kythed” his spirit there. If asked to explain the soulful events they generally agree that there are no words to describe them; a perfect corroboration of “kything.”

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

John Muir—Shakespeare—Mysteries of the Sierra Nevada Mountains

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Photo credit: creationsdawn-WordPress.com

“No amount of word-making will ever make a single soul to know these mountains. As well seek to warm the naked and frost-bitten by lectures on caloric and pictures of flame. One day’s exposure to mountains is better than cartloads of books.” JM

In three simple, expository lines Muir opened a window to his soul. He revealed that he was closest to God when he was in the mountains, and predating Zora Hurston,
(Their Eyes Were Watching God) indicated that you have to go there to know there.

It is likely that two of the many reasons that John Muir has attracted so many millions of Nature lovers are his ultra-exuberance for life and his holistic vision. Adding Shakespeare’s adage:

“This above all: to thine own self be true,

and it must follow, as the night the day,

thou canst not then be false to any man,”

Muir was honor-bound to reveal his frustration that the confining limits of even the finest version of the Homo sapiens’ vernacular precluded him from adequately describing the marvels, miracles and mysteries of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. He made it very clear that all of his five senses were taxed vastly beyond the descriptive power of any words.

Hearing:

Following a large earthquake in Yosemite Valley he wrote: “It seemed to me that if all of the thunder I ever heard were condensed into one roar it would not equal this rock roar at the birth of a mountain talus. Think, then of the roar that arose to heaven when all of the thousands of ancient canyon taluses throughout the length and breadth of the range were simultaneously given birth.”

Smell:

I don’t recall this description, but he was surely aware of the nearly overwhelmingly sweet smell of the Jeffrey Pine forests on a hot autumn afternoon. Or the delight of inviting fellow walkers to poke their noses into a Jeffrey or Ponderosa Pine and hear them respond: “It smells like butterscotch!” or “It smells like vanilla!”

Taste:

One of his great pleasures was to dip his head into an icy-cold alpine stream and taste water that he described as more glorious than champagne. Gourmet food had no appeal to him and he embraced the precept; “Man does not live by bread alone.”

Touch:

Muir’s world was an ongoing, enhanced tactile event. He felt wonder where others felt rocks. While camping in Yosemite, he felt rapture by walking in “creation’s dawn”…where, “the morning stars still sing together and the world, not yet half made, becomes more beautiful every day.” But one of his great joys was to make a bed of freshly cut boughs of cedar, fir, hemlock or spruce, snuggle down under a single wool blanket and fall into a deep sleep with the feeling of; the peace of the mountains that transcends all human comprehension.

Sight:

After Muir was nearly blinded in one eye due to an industrial accident he was directed to stay in a darkened room for one month. After the one-month-confinement he went for a walk in an Indiana woods and described beauty so intense that it created a deep visceral pain. The pain mysteriously subsided when he closed his eyes. The walk turned out to be perhaps the greatest epiphany of his life and he reckoned he would begin a 1,000-mile-walk and “say goodbye to mechanical inventions and study the inventions of God.” That singular event probably prepared him to see visions, marvels and wonders that others were not aware of. While in Yosemite, he often slept under a canopy of billions and billions of intensely brilliant stars. Each day he tried to single out one of the 8 million humanly visible colors that reflected, refracted and illuminated his beloved “Range Of Light.” While living (and preparing his journals for publication) in San Francisco, Muir was exposed daily to the social malaise of people living in the “lowlands.” He was keenly aware that his spiritual experiences could not be translated into words, which compelled him to dedicate his life to offering his thoughts as a form of literary enticement to encourage his readers to: “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 off like autumn leaves.”

(Photo credit: creationsdawn-WordPress.com)

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

St. John of the Mountains

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Happy 181st Birthday John Muir: April 21, 1838

After whimsically describing John Muir as, “St. John of the Mountains,” I have come to suspect the designation may have been more Jungian and less whimsy. If so, his elevation to sainthood may not be an unrealistic overreach. In many ways he lived like an ascetic monk, welcoming hardships that few people would (or could) endure. He survived extended periods in the wilderness with a single wool blanket; tin cup, some tea and a pillowcase containing dried bread-balls.

“Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness. All other travel is mere dust and hotels and baggage and chatter.”

As a highly literate man, Muir was likely aware that his philosophy was closely related to St. Francis of Assisi and St. Ignatius of Loyola. Both men were devout Nature lovers and described all matters natural as the handiwork of God.

Denis Williams wrote in his book, God’s Wilds: John Muir’s Vision of Nature (College Station: Texas A&M Univ. Press):

“Muir saw nature as a great teacher, ‘revealing the mind of God,’ and this belief became the central theme of his later journeys and the “subtext” of his nature writing.”

Muir joined Henry Thoreau and R.W. Emerson in a brotherhood of naturalists who believed that a quintessential component of becoming fully human involved transcending the confining bonds of logic, reason and egoism in order to be spiritually born: Ergo, Mystery remains Supreme.

Perhaps it is also not a reach to deduce that if Muir had been a member of the Roman Catholic Church, he would have been canonized long ago. However, the reality is that he regarded the universe as his church and being the free spirit that he was, chose not to identify with any particular branch of religion:

“Dam Hetch Hetchy! As well dam for water tanks the people’s cathedrals and churches, for no holier temple has ever been consecrated by the heart of man.”

Photo: Matt Stoecker
(Inlaid Photo: I.W. Taber)

As a child, he had memorized much of the Holy Bible and his writing often reflected Holy Scripture; as in the case of Psalm 8:

“When I consider Thy heavens,
the work of Thy fingers, The moon and the stars,
which Thou hast ordained;
What is man, that Thou dost take thought of him?” KJV

He also frequently sowed spiritual seeds with writings:

“From the dust of the earth, from the common elementary fund, the Creator has made Homo sapiens.”

“In God’s wildness lies the hope of the world—the great fresh, unblighted, unredeemed wilderness. The galling harness of civilization drops off and the wounds heal ere we are aware.”

Sometimes his words and deeds can be considered downright evangelical:

“I care to live only to entice people to look at Nature’s loveliness. Heaven knows that John the Baptist was not more eager to get all of his fellow sinners into the Jordan than I to baptize all of mine in the beauty of God’s mountains.”

Photo: artinnaturephotography.com

One of the prerequisites of achieving sainthood is an act of performing a miracle. Because Muir was such a spiritual giant, few would argue that his life, works and legacy have provided inspiration, comfort, even healing for countless millions of people, many of who have experienced Nature-induced “born-again experiences.” His lofty vision of the importance of “eco-spirituality” has spread globally. Through his inspiration and guidance countless thousands of national, state and regional parks have been established worldwide. After Muir’s famous camp-out with Teddy Roosevelt, on top of Yosemite’s Glacier Point, Roosevelt signed into existence five national parks, 18 national monuments, 55 national bird sanctuaries and wildlife refuges, and 150 national forests. Millions of acres have been set-aside for the primary purpose of encouraging people to reconnect with Mother Nature.

“Everybody needs beauty…places to play in and pray in where nature may heal and cheer and give strength to the body and soul alike.” JM

Photo: jhmg.com

Muir wrote about “poets, philosophers and prophets” coming down from the mountains to improve humanity, but was too humble to realize that he belonged to that pantheon of sages. Countless millions of followers have joined the “Sierra Club” he founded, which has had a huge national and international impact, encouraging people to “go to the mountains” and seek a spiritual rebirth.

The final line in his marvelous story about his little wonder-dog Stickeen was:

“To me Stickeen is immortal!”

In what has become an extraordinary irony, it is truly John Muir who has become immortal in the hearts and minds of countless millions of Nature lovers around the world.

“St. John of the Mountains” has a nice ring to it.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

John Muir and a Sea of Wildflowers

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There are religious scholars who believe that John Muir was sent as God’s messenger to interpret and describe the wonders and miracles of the wilderness. Conversely, there are secular scientists who assert that his life is a testament of the unlimited creativity of random genetic combinations without involvement with a Supreme Being. However, what they may agree on is that his life appears to be a huge synchronicity that resulted in his “thoughts and deeds that have moved the world.” (JM) In fact, his life was filled with so many synchronicities that they are too numerous to count. Muir seems to have had a gift for being at the right place at the right time. Perhaps he was aware that Louis Pasteur opined, “Chance favors the prepared mind,” as he was passionate and dedicated with his endless plans to explore the mysteries and revelations of Nature.

“The world is big and I want to have a good look at it before it gets dark.” JM

One of these events involved his first walk from San Francisco to Yosemite Valley. He arrived in the spring and walked south along the Coast Range and ascended Pacheco Pass. His first view of the California’s Central Valley was a view that stirred his soul.

Excerpt: “The Mountains of California.” JM

“The Great Central Plain of California, during the months of March, April and May, was one smooth, continuous bed of honey bloom, so marvelously rich that, in walking one end to the other, a distance of more than four hundred miles, your foot would press about a hundred flowers at every step…

When I first saw this central garden, the most extensive and regular of all the bee pastures of the State, it seemed all one sheet of plant gold, hazy and vanishing in the distant, distinct as a new map of the foothills at my feet…

Sauntering in any direction, hundreds of these happy sun-plants brushed against my feet at every step, and closed over them as if I were wading in liquid gold.” He wrote elsewhere, “ Only God can paint with flowers.”

Nearly every square foot of California’s Great Central Valley, from Mt. Shasta in the north and Mt. Whitney in the south, has been “repurposed” to accommodate human habitation. Fortunately, some of the lower foothills have escaped the destructive power of devotees of “progress.” Because of the atypically high rainfall this year, California is experiencing a rare explosion of wildflower life. It is a poignant reminder of what John Muir saw on his first walk from San Francisco to Yosemite Valley. Although impressive, this walk was only one of thousands of walks that contributed to the larger-than-life legendary John Muir.

Photo credit: Lake Elsinore Poppies: regensburgerphotography.com

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

John Muir—Total Lunar Eclipse Over Half Dome And Beyond

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Among perhaps the three greatest American Naturalists, John Muir was clearly the wildest. He “walked-the-walk and talked-the-talk” throughout vast areas of unspoiled wilderness. He experienced and described marvels, wonders and miracles that R.W. Emerson and H.D. Thoreau could not envision in their widest imagination. Emerson chose to write from the comfort of his office desk. Thoreau attempted to ascend Mt. Katahdin (5200 ft.), got lost in the fog and wrote: …“I fear bodies, I tremble to meet them. What is this Titan that has possession of me?”

Muir easily walked the equivalent of around the world and the list of mountains that he climbed is extraordinary; including Mt. Whitney (14,500 ft.), Mt. Shasta (14,100 ft.), Mt. Rainer (14, 411 ft.).

Even though he walked the world over, Muir’s favorite “temple” was Yosemite Valley, which he boldly proclaimed kept him in a constant state of elevated physical, mental and spiritual transcendence. Evidently, over 700 St. Helena High School advanced biology students agreed, especially those who participated in a total lunar eclipse on the top of Yosemite’s Half Dome.

After 24 years of leading high school students into Yosemite’s wilderness, it seemed as though Mother Nature saved one of her finest synchronicities for our last trip. Each year students were challenged to get as close to the living spirit of Muir as they could. Some experienced a “John Muir baptism” under Nevada Fall. Many slept under the stars on top of Half Dome (when it was legal). One class slept through a snowstorm; one class descended the Half Dome cables in a freak ice storm. It seemed to help that they had previously read about Muir’s escapades: a face-to-face encounter with a Yosemite bear; climbing a swaying fir tree in a windstorm; “scoochering” out on a ledge under the brow of a flooding Yosemite Fall; body-surfing an avalanche; inching across an ice bridge on an Alaskan glacier; frolicking during a major earthquake in Yosemite Valley; and wallowing all night (14 hours) in a Mt. Shasta fumarole during a snow storm.

The fall of 1996 proved to be our last trip to Yosemite. We camped at Little Yosemite Valley and planned a day-hike to explore the top of Half Dome. After a wondrous afternoon, the sun began to set and a small group of mostly boys approached me with a bold request. We had discussed the total lunar eclipse that was predicted that evening and I mentioned that we could not stay on top because descending the cables in the dark was not a risk I could take.

However, the group leader informed me that they had all brought along headlights and reminded me that chaperone Mark Salvestrin was a skilled wilderness guide. Furthermore, he was also a gifted Nature photographer who might be able to capture some of the magic of the eclipse. During our pre-trip studies, we learned that some Scots still believe in “Kything,” (communicating with the dead). One of the boys suggested that he had checked with Muir’s spirit and he agreed they should stay for the show. The group erupted with laughter, but I wondered if, in his clever ploy, the boy might have been on to something.

Whether in print or verbally, Muir enthusiastically credited a “Heavenly Creator” for guiding his life. Understandably, he was perplexed by fellow wilderness trekkers who put their trust in a small brass compass with a magnetic needle, but remained unaware of spiritual guidance from a Higher Power. Intriguingly, before I encountered the “Spirit of Muir,” I was in that company. As a “science” teacher, I had little (if any) interest in religious discourse and without him I probably would have lived my life agreeing with the great Stephen Hawking, (“The Great Design”) …God has become obsolete.

Thankfully, in direct opposition, Muir’s extraordinary theological interpretation of Yosemite: “a place to play and a place to pray” radically transformed my life and led me to the conclusion that he remains as a spiritual bridge between Heaven and Earth.

In the end I was swayed by the students’ tenacity and agreed that I would lead one group down to Little Yosemite Valley and Mark would lead the eclipse gazers down after dark.

After returning to camp, it was immediately clear that participating in a total lunar eclipse on top of Half Dome would become a totally, “you have to go there to know there” experience. The gazers effused enthusiasm as they absorbed the fact that they would not likely ever see an event like that again in their entire lifetime. They confirmed what Muir claimed that Nature never disappoints and always offers more that we expect.

Mark’s photo conjures up wonderful questions about mysteries of Muir’s “Heavenly Creator.” So, just what is it that makes lunar eclipses so intriguing? After all, in terms of gravitation, nothing unusual occurs: no changes in tidal rhythm or abnormal weather patterns.

On the other hand, there is a lot of space “out there” and when we consider the synchronicity of variables necessary for the Earth, Sun and Moon to align perfectly, it boggles the mind.

  1. Our moon revolves around the Earth every 29.5 days and due to a mysterious “synchronous rotation” it keeps the same face turned toward the Earth.
  2. The Earth’s rotational velocity at the equator is about 1,000 mph; San Francisco is moving approximately 700 mph and the velocity at the poles is zero.
  3. The Earth is revolving around the sun at about 67,000 mph.
  4. Our Solar System is traveling through the Milky Way Galaxy at 45,000 mph.
  5. The Milky Way Galaxy is moving approx. 1,000,000 mph through “NOTHING!” Well, except for some widely scattered hydrogen ions.
  6. We are headed for the constellation Hercules, but not to worry. It is over 1 million light years away and the distance that light travels is about 6 trillion miles per year. Therefore, we will have to travel 131,000,000,000,000,000 miles to get there.

Stories like these send chills down my spine when I contemplate that I could have missed 24 years of John Muir guiding my amazingly curious students on inner spiritual journeys via wilderness adventures. It is heartbreaking to know that very few of our public school children from K-grad-school will experience what Muir was writing about.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Ansel Adams-Horsetail Fall-Lori Evensen-Biodesign ‘79

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Although I have never met Dr. Michael Adams, son of Ansel Adams, our spirits were recently engaged in a splendid synchronicity that began nearly 40 years ago. It involves a revolutionary advanced biology class that I was privileged to participate in at St. Helena High School in the Napa Valley. It was revolutionary because the students elected to eschew the traditional practice of memorizing all the parts of a fetal pig in exchange for exploring the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of Yosemite, Grand Canyon and the Mendocino Coastal area.

The class was dedicated to, “the illimitable freedom of the human mind.” Instead of pigs, we considered the great biological scholars, sages, poets, philosophers and artists, including world-famous photographer Ansel Adams. We kept two different coffee-table-format books of his photography in the biology classroom. The evolution of the class was the result of teacher-student collaboration as evinced by this blog.

The great biologist, Louis Pasteur, opined, “chance favors the prepared mind” and we spent much pre-trip time and effort preparing our minds. E. g, before the Yosemite trip, the students were expected to read, “The Wilderness World Of John Muir,” edited by Edwin Teale. Along with wonderful stories and ecological wisdom, the book includes an illuminating chapter on John Muir’s philosophy. Students were also required to select an appropriate topic for an expository essay.

The Class of 1979 included Lori Evensen, a very bright, very curious, highly talented artist. Not surprisingly, she chose Ansel Adams as the subject of her essay. At the end she credited Adams for inspiring her to continue her artwork. She also mentioned that it was now a dream of hers to meet him and perhaps attend one of his Yosemite photography workshops.

Her essay was so spirit-filled that I shared it with Mike Snowden, colleague, fellow-hiker and backpacker. As he read, he laughed out loud and exclaimed, “I know Ansel Adams! In fact, I have spent several weekends in his home and even helped him in his darkroom. My aunt Gerry (Sharpe) was his “Girl Friday” and served as his assistant for many years.”

He went on to say that his aunt and Mom (Jane Snowden) have several of Adams’ original prints, which are quite valuable. He also mentioned that Adams was very gregarious and would probably welcome a visit from an aspiring young photographer. I was astounded by the conversation, but doubted that it would yield any results. However, Mike called either his aunt or Adams and arranged a suitable time for a visit. Apparently, along with his willingness to share his artistic philosophy, he was planning to demonstrate some of his darkroom skills. A mutual friend of ours owned a small airplane and volunteered to fly Lori down to Carmel, Ca. for the day. All was in order. Sadly, however, a few weeks before the scheduled visit, Adams suffered a heart attack and all scheduled meetings had to be canceled.

Lori graduated and I taught for 20 more years until I retired. After several years of reflecting on the mystery, wonder (even small miracles) experienced during 63 trips into the wilderness, I decided to attempt to write a book and share a sample of the student discoveries.

Shortly after “Biodesign Out For A Walk” was released, we created a website to expand our reader base. A couple of years ago, I started writing blogs for the site. After a friend shared a photo of this year’s luminous reappearance of Yosemite’s mystical “Horsetail Fall,” I decided to write a blog about it. Of course, I had no foreknowledge that, while viewing a Youtube video on the extraordinary fall, Michael Adams would appear and complete this fantastic synchronicity.

I sent Lori a copy of that letter and assumed that the multifaceted synchronicity was complete. It was not! Recently, without knowing what I was thinking, she began sorting through a collection of her high school memorabilia. Much to her delight and surprise, she discovered a letter from Ansel Adams that she had totally forgotten. She was not alone. Even though the letter was addressed to me, I also had no memory of it.

Although the letter is intriguing, perhaps more importantly, it reveals the quintessence of Adams. He was facing a potentially life-threatening open-heart surgery, yet cared enough about a total stranger (high school student) to express his regrets and offer her hope for a possible post-surgery meeting. The meeting never happened, however, his spirit has become immortalized in both Lori and my hearts.

I sent a modified version of this story to Dr. Adams, expressing my deep appreciation and gratitude for the inspiration his father provided for our students and me.

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Yosemite Horsetail Fall-Quintessence-Aristotle

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“So you went to the Louvre:

What did you see?

After the first Artist

Only the copyist.” – Renny Russel: “On The Loose.”

 

It is intriguing to wonder what the Ahwahnechee Indians must have thought when they observed Yosemite’s Horsetail Fall. It is quite likely that, because of when, where and how they lived, they understood the mysterious event better that the Greeks and modern scientists. Perhaps they thought “The Great Spirit” was offering them a gift of water that could morph into liquid gold, then into liquid fire and return to water.

Before the periodic chart was developed, Empedocles proposed that the known universe was made out of four “elements;” earth, water, air and fire. Aristotle added a fifth element, aether; it has been called akasha in India and quintessence in Europe. Quintessence emerged with a plethora of supporting synonyms, which include, heaven, spirit and soul. Perhaps not surprisingly, the concept of the five elements formed a basis of analysis in both Hinduism and Buddhism .

With that as background, it is not surprising that thousands of Nature lovers flock to Yosemite Valley each February, in hopes of being lucky enough to see the illuminated Horsetail Fall. Aristotle would have rejoiced and properly pointed out that the stunning spectacle was caused by the “5 elements,” earth (rock), water, air, fire and aether.

The potential of being thrilled by the beauty of the event is enhanced by the fact that it is a complex, illusive synchronicity. All five elements have to converge at a precise time and place in Yosemite Valley. The sky must be clear, atmospheric conditions must be ideal; the necessary amount of water present and the setting sun must be at the perfect angle of inclination. Typically, this can only happen during a few days each February when the illuminated water can cascade down nearly 2,000 feet to Yosemite Valley.

Early concessioners at Yosemite must have seen the February spectacle and lamented that it did not occur more regularly and thus attract more tourists. By 1872 a road had been built to Glacier Point and soon after, concessioners began building a huge bonfire each afternoon. They piled on large chunks of red fir bark, which is a natural insulator and somewhat fire resistant. By 9:00 PM each evening, the fiery embers were shoved over Glacier Point in what was called “The Fire Falls.”

This practice continued nearly 100 years, but was terminated in 1968. Although the show was impressive to many, to seasoned Nature lovers, there was an unsettling sense of ersatz about it. Simply put, it was impossible for a fire to spontaneously combust in the afternoon and then fling itself over a cliff after nightfall; not to mention the huge waste of logs and fir bark.

As camping, hiking, backpacking and ecotourism became more popular, YNP properly concluded that the Fire Fall had an unnatural, Disney Land, feel about it.

Perhaps, on a deeper level, they realized that it was impossible for man to “improve” Yosemite’s “quintessence.”

The people who flock to Horsetail Fall each February may or may not be overtly spiritual people. However, the mere fact that they are responding to one of Mother Nature’s more extraordinary displays suggests an inner sense of awe, wonder and spiritual curiosity.

I don’t recall John Muir mentioning the fiery version of Horsetail Fall. However, if he did see it, I can imagine him raising his arms to heaven, like a Baptist Preacher, and exulting, “Thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory for ever and ever, amen!”

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com

Happy 2017 with Michelangelo and John Muir

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michelangoMichelangelo is widely regarded as the most famous artist of the Italian Renaissance. If his goals in life had been lower, the world would never have known his “David” and “Pieta” statues and the Sistine Chapel frescoes. He was a painter, architect and sculptor and dedicated his life to getting as close to the creative power of God as he could. The fact that his works have been enjoyed and celebrated by countless millions of people, for over 500 years, indicates that he may have come pretty close. His lifelong philosophy paralleled that of John Muir, who also set some very lofty goals. After he nearly blinded himself in a factory accident, he vowed to forgo studying the works of man and dedicate his life “studying the works of God.”

We hope 2017 is filled with many physical, mental and spiritual hikes and ends with you standing on higher ground than you are standing on today.

Lowell & Christie

 

Heaven and Earth

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psalm-8-3-4“I used to envy the father of our race, dwelling as he did in contact with the new-made fields and plants of Eden; but I so no more, because I have discovered that I also live in ‘creation’s dawn.’ The morning stars still sing together, and the world, not yet half made, becomes more beautiful every day.”   John Muir

Like so many of Muir’s power-packed-paragraphs, there is a cartload of wisdom in this one. In two simple declarative sentences, he is acknowledging, thanking and communing with God. Furthermore, he is tacitly suggesting that the words “evolution” and “creation” are one and the same.

Darwin’s, “The Origin of Species,” was published in 1859. Muir was 21, but after 50 years of researching his works, I have not found one reference to Darwin. I suspect that he would have regarded the so-called “great debate” of Creation vs. the theory of evolution a superfluous waste of time.

I find it intriguing that often, when John Muir lovers discover that he carried a pocket version of  “The New Testament and Psalms” with him on his excursions, they become vexed, even defiant. I suspect, that in an effort to conform to “political correctness,” even USPS “interpretive naturalists” religiously ignore Muir’s depth of Christian spirituality (pun intended).  Perhaps they do not know (or care) that, as a mechanical engineer, Muir regarded Yosemite as nothing less than one of God’s most “glorious” creations.

Unlike me ;o), Muir knew all of the Psalms by heart and I cannot help but think that he was the superb embodiment of Psalm 8. I know of no other naturalist who approached this level of perfection and therefore it is not surprising that many consider him the world’s greatest naturalist.

To that point, watching the ecological destruction of Planet Earth, if Muir were alive today, I am not so sure he would still think:

“The morning stars still sing together, and the world, not yet half made, becomes more beautiful every day.”

Lowell H. Young
Author: Biodesign Out For A Walk

young.lowell@gmail.com