Final Reflection- Field Experience 7

Final Reflection

                I must admit that I am experiencing mixed feelings about the end of this class. I was not excited or enthused to always be in class, but it has become something that is integral to my total Johnson and Wales experience. Though English and the environment are certainly not my forte, this class has challenged my work ethic and mental capacity. I can affectively say that I have come out of the class a better person and student. This class has made me work harder than I ever have for an academic class, but I really do enjoy the outcome and I can say that I feel like I am a better person because of it. I do wish that we had been able to take full advantage of the trips into the woods, but I enjoyed the Crowder’s Mountain trip and subsequent hike. It taught me that I can do whatever I set my mind to. It also taught me that, no matter what stands in front of me, I can overcome and dominate it. It also taught me to trust my classmates and to not underestimate people. I honestly did not expect half of our class to make the entire hike up the mountain, but I was certainly proud of each and every person who did. I learned that there is strength and support in numbers, and alone, a man can never accomplish as much as he could in a group. I was amazed at the reaction when one of our classmates fell and hurt themselves. The person got back up and pushed themselves mentally towards the goal. Our entire class bonded through the mountain experience. New personal friendships were forged, and some of these friendships will last longer than any of us can count. I will forever be grateful for the people I met and bonded with on Crowder’s Mountain. I have always been more liberal leaning, so my values have always been more eco-minded. This class re-enforced those beliefs, and it has also given be a academic base to back my opinions on. The research paper on beach erosion touched me personally, and gave me a topic to write about that I was personally interested in. I am almost always in a beach state of mind, but this paper made me realize just how precious our beaches are and how fleeting they can become. Being able to choose your own topic and having almost complete freedom with that topic is unheard of in high school, but it really instates a feeling of pride in the work. I can attribute my high grade to this feeling of pride and responsibility in my work. I felt that it was a topic that needed to be fully addressed, and I used this paper to do so. I feel that my beliefs have changed from a blindly left leaning set of beliefs and core values to a more educated and validated set of beliefs and values. This is a valuable asset as we all move on towards a world that will constantly challenge our core beliefs and values. We must be able to validate our beliefs on the spot, or we may suffer a loss public credibility. In the beginning of the class, I defined nature, environment, and wilderness by a cut and dry definition. After experiencing all of this class, I can no longer define these with such sure meanings. These are more existential words that cannot be confined to such strict interpretations. With words that cover such a wide area, people are really up to their own interpretations. I would define nature as anything natural or unharmed by man’s brutal touch. My definition has remained unchanged throughout this class and its rigors.  Nature is a pure entity, and it is sad when man destroys and pillages it for his own benefit. What many do not realize is that nature provides everything man could ever want, but it its raw state, many do not recognize. Environment’s definition to me was man’s immediate surroundings. It altered due to some of the readings we discovered. I can now change my definition to everything’s surroundings. Environment is made up of every natural and unnatural thing that encompasses our world.  We are constantly changing environments and settings, and this fact makes individual environments so unique and special.  Finally, my definition of wilderness has altered from the first day of class. I had originally defined wilderness as untamed nature. I now would define wilderness as the total lack of civilization and man’s brutal touch.  I believe that if man can experience total wilderness and absolute nature without the grasps of other men and their dastardly development, he can become truly at peace with himself and his transgressions. Wilderness can serve as catharsis to the human soul and spirit. It possesses the unique contradicting power to both cleanse and destroy the human body. The wild fury of true wilderness can both intimidate and inspire man to no end. My field experience did begin the alteration of my definitions. Crowder’s Mountain did serve as one of the most changing experiences in my entire experience in Eco-writing. The most important lesson I learned in this class was to never give up on myself or sell myself short. I was not always confident in my writing ability, but this class has made sure that there was no room for unsure sentiments. There simply was not time to doubt myself or my writing. I will take the lessons learned from the class and apply them to everyday life. I can say with ultimate confidence that this class, and the lessons taught in it, have altered the way I approach monumental and seemingly overwhelming tasks. I will not doubt the outcome, and I surely will not waste time with procrastination. Procrastination is the enemy of success, and English 1920 has taught me that any serious task cannot be put off to the last minute. Serious academic ventures demand serious time and effort, and this class has been an amazing example of that fact. The word “challenge” does not begin to cover the amount of dedication and effort I put forth in this class. The entire class was a challenge, but keeping up to date with the small tasks, such as reading journals and field experience logs, proved the most challenging. They were not difficult tasks, but they proved to be some of the most thought provoking of any assignment given. At first glance, the homework seems trivial and able to be swiftly completed. I quickly found that these were some of the most difficult and crucial assignments. They challenged my ability as a writer, and they made me think about my preconceptions about many aspects of nature and the wilderness that ultimately surrounds us all. I think that the course would have been lacking a certain home thought aspect if these had been omitted or lessened. Though often a source of complaint, I can see their importance to the course and I believe they serve as a key aspect of the entire English 1920 experience that we are all better people for going through. I think that if I had not elected to take this course, I would have been cheating myself and my education. Even though I am not at Johnson and Wales University for an English based degree, I have thoroughly enjoyed this course and I would have deeply regretted not taking this course. As with any difficult and seemingly impossible task, the end is filled with a climactic and euphoric feeling of accomplishment. As with multiple other occasions, I can only relate this class to athletics. The end to this class feels like the end of an excruciating lift or game. The feeling of total exhaustion, mixed with the euphoria of accomplishment is one that every person, of every race and creed, needs to experience before they die. It is truly an indescribable feeling; it is a feeling that is unique to each situation and no two are ever the same. This class has forever altered the way I feel about English and composition. Because both my parents are veteran educators, I have always heard theories and different ideas about how to teach a course, and how each idea can individually affect a student. This course has allowed me to discover exactly how certain theories and methods can be employed to inspire students to learn and thrive. Because of the lessons learned in this course, I will forever compare other courses to Eco-writing, and many will fall far short of the mark set by this class. I believe that if a teacher can not only teach his or her students the prescribed course material, but also inspire his or her students with the material, he or she has truly reached the apex of teaching. I have been endlessly inspired and changed by this course and its material. While this course was, by far, the most challenging course I have ever embarked on, it turned out  to be one of the most inspiring and rewarding courses I ever had the privilege to enroll in.

Reading Journal 7

                Franklin Burroughs writes of a tragic story of a moose hunt in his story Of Moose and Moose Hunter. This story explores the ultimate competition between nature/wilderness and man. The man has just moved to Maine. He assumes that the moose are extinct and he will never experience seeing one. He compares the moose to an eradicated Indian tribe and wolves and caribou. His mood changes when he is invited by one of his neighbors to watch a calf drink from its mother behind Burroughs’ house. Burroughs tells about the experience of chasing a moose around a bend. The moose’s herky-jerky motions reminded the author of a puppet. The author describes the moose’s encounters with urban life. “a wild creature, baffled and intrigued by the dazzling peculiarities of humankind, was tentatively coming forward as a candidate for domestication.” I take this assertion to mean that, animals are never wanting to de-domesticate humans, but we always see nature and want to remove its natural being and extreme wild senses. The moose is in some danger as he comes up to, and becomes more comfortable with his urban, humanized surroundings. This comfort is dangerous to the wilderness sense of the moose. As animals become more comfortable with humans and their surroundings, they slowly begin to become less and less wild and tamer. Their natural instincts are dulled and ultimately their wild energy is replaced with domestic tranquility. The latter scenes are of hunters perusing a moose and ultimately killing it. The author wonders if the kill was easy because of the moose’s trusting nature. He wonders if the hunted moose was the same moose brought into suburbia by its natural curiosity and then paid dearly with its life. He lost the natural instincts  that would have otherwise kept him safely away from the grips of hunters.

Reading Journal #6

                In the short story “The Snakes are About” by Terrence Hanbury, the author describes a situation that he goes through each season when the snakes exit hibernation. He and his friend go out into the woods and search for snakes in the complete wilderness.  They capture the snakes and do something that any sane human would consider madness. He releases the snakes into his sitting room and allows them to roam free as they please. The ritual of capturing the snakes is also seemingly insane; he describes the process as exciting and one he looks forward to every year. He pounces on snakes blindly, and hopes that the one he grabs is a garden snake and not an adder. He allows the garden snake to spray a white liquid and wraps him in a handkerchief. The snakes then go home with the author in his pockets. The author takes great joy in watching his newly captured snakes pour over his home in a natural way. He tries not to touch or handle the snakes too often for fear of removing their natural sense. He is literally bringing nature into his home and attempting to co-exist peacefully with it. Because of this, he has successfully achieved tried to incorporate wilderness and the wild into his twenty-first century home. He ventures out into nature and tries to bring some of nature back with him. Towards the end of the story, he walks out into a lake to bathe and notices one of his snakes, lying dead next to the lake. He realizes that, against everything he had attempted to do, he had taken away the snake’s natural fear of man. The snake had approached a human carelessly and the human had repaid the curious snake with death. The delicate balance between nature and man is one of the most fragile balances in the entire known universe.  Any tampering, no matter how innocent, is sure to harm the balance in some way.

Reading Journal #5 Living Like Weasels

            In reading “Living Like Weasels” by Annie Dillard, something struck me as profound. I realized that nature can take care of itself, but it is often protruded upon by suburban human life. The weasel is a commanding symbol of the natural world’s power and dominance. The weasel is a determined creature, and oftentimes will clench on to its prey with its powerful jaws, even if the creature being bitten is much more powerful. The example of the eagle shot down is an excellent illustration of nature’s strength over itself. The eagle was found to have a weasel skull still clamped down on the much larger birds neck is a strong example of the wild drive that is inbred by instinct. The wilderness is a vast and potentially savage place. The weasel is an instinctually savage beast; it knows how to kill its prey, even if it had never faced such an opponent before. The author states that “A weasel doesn’t ‘attack’ anything, a weasel lives as he’s meant to.” The author explains that he has seen into the weasel’s brain, and the weasel was able to gaze into the authors mind. They shared thoughts and realized that the weasel’s mind was much more survival based, thriving on nature and wilderness. The author also describes a pond that is five minutes from a suburban neighborhood, but as he stands on the shore, he cannot see the neighborhood. He describes the scene and it reminded me of our trip to Crowder’s Mountain. It was nature and man in a state of flux; the land is alternately claimed by both, but never totally dominated by either. The author provides that, while he looked around the bushes, there was either a “muskrat hole or a beer can”. Man’s grasp was obvious, but nature and wilderness are attempting to fight back and recapture what was then and is now rightfully their property

Reading Journal #4

            After reading the excerpt from Songlines a comparison jumped forth from the pages. The comparison to the Into the Wild excerpt is that everyone is searching for their own belonging in the world. The book passage speaks of the Aborigines and their Dreamlines. The aboriginal belief is similar to the Biblical passage of God creating man from clay. The Australian Aborigines believe that they created themselves from clay. The book says that “So when an Aboriginal tells you, ‘I have a Wallaby Dreaming’ he means. ‘My totem is Wallaby. I am a member of the Wallaby Clan.’” The Australians have an extremely strong connection to nature and their environment; therefore, they are very protective about their individual Dreamings or clans. Every man is searching for his own world; therefore, not every man will find his world in the same manner. Chris from Into the Wild found his own world in a manner many would never choose. He searched for his own place in the world through total immersion into nature. He wandered into the wilderness hopelessly searching for something better and different than what he had in the civilized environment. He scoured and searched the Alaskan and Californian wilderness for somewhere he felt he belonged. He felt that his Dreamline was leading him into the wilderness. He felt that his only chance to find his own niche was to completely and totally disconnect himself from the civilized world and throw himself at the whims of the natural and savage wilderness. He seemed to ignore the warnings of those more experienced and knowledgeable than him and charged headlong into the wild. Chris even reinvented himself in the wild as Alexander Supertramp. He was a young man truly unhappy with his life and he was brave enough to try and alter his environment. If everyone understood where they came from, perhaps we could fix where we are going.

Death Of an Innocent- Reading Journal #3

            Having read the entire book Into the Wild, this except brings back memories for me. I felt a personal connection with Chris and his journey throughout the wilderness. I believe that everyone, at one time or another, has pondered dropping everything and simply returning to nature. At many times, I have caught myself staring out a window, fantasizing about what it would be like to forget my societal problems and simple commune and be at one with nature, if only for a brief moment. Though Chris’s story does end tragically, his story is inspiring. At the beginning of his journey, he is warned many times not to go into the tundra without any preparations or experience. He simple shirks these warnings and begins what will amount to the final journey of his life. Chris’s blind ambition provides him with a false sense of knowledge and safety. “Then, smiling broadly, he disappeared down the snow-covered trail.” It has been said many times that ignorance is bliss; Chris’s attitude exemplifies this proverb. He journeys into the wild because his environment has become tiresome and angering.  He abandons the civilized world for the comfort that only the extreme wilderness can provide. Speaking only from personal experience, wilderness can provide incredible solace and comfort. Wilderness can take a man to his personal thresholds and then push him far beyond; he can be taken into a realm he never knew existed. There is a danger in this realm however. Man must know when to push back against nature so he is not taken over the edge of sanity. Chris McCandless was a victim of this constant pushing, and he never returned to civilized society. He fell victim to wilderness and its untamed wrath. Nature can certainly provide solace, but you must know how to receive this solace.

Field Experience

            Sitting on top of the mountain, these are the thoughts that are crossing my mind. They are varied and many, but one theme is very common. The issues that were on my mind yesterday and the previous night simply don’t seem as important or plaguing today. Looking to the horizon and seeing Charlotte as a vague outline on the horizon makes me once again realize exactly how miniscule I really am in comparison to everything else in the universe. I have felt this way before. I was sitting on a board, floating over a sandbar, facing the vast expanse of the ocean. Knowing that it could take me in an instant if it wanted to was a strangely comforting thought. You could call it a religious experience, and I know that I will, but being completely at natures will is an amazing feeling. I thoroughly believe that this feeling can cure anything that ails the human spirit. I feel calm at this point. Now thinking about it, this mountain is truly symbolic of life’s journey. At the beginning, life’s journey is easy, and so is the hike up the mountain. Towards the middle of the both journeys, it slowly becomes more difficult to move forward. At the end of the journey, it is strenuous and moving forward seemingly is impossible, but the end is serene. Sitting on a cold rock looking out over the forest and seeing Charlotte as an indescribable blur is an amazing feeling. The Bible comes to mind at a time like this, the particular verse is 2 Timothy 4:7. “ I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” I am not sure why this verse popped into my head, but I am glad it decided to pop in. Sitting on the mountain is an amazing feeling and I am completely at peace with all of my surroundings. If every person in the world could experience this, I believe many of the worlds issues could be solved.

Reading Journal #2 A City Person Encountering Nature

Reading this story is quite introspective for me.  I can relate very much with the authors ideas and new feelings for the sea critters. I have found myself, oftentimes completely by chance, in complete amazement of the sea and the life it beholds.  The ocean can open up entirely new worlds and avenues of thought with the simplest of discoveries. As she ponders the life in her palm, she “felt her mind go wild.” Her mind configures the creature into two spacemen dropped off onto earth. Her ideas about the creature spur new ideas and make her feel like she is having the perfect dream. Because of her experiences on the first day, she goes back to find more of the strange creatures the next day. She finds the creatures entangled and churning in the water. She describes the scene as “not knowing whether they were killing each other or mating.”  They try to unsuccessfully separate them and seemingly wound the creatures. Nature took command of the situation and the creatures swim away peacefully. The author and her friend check their watches and realize that they had both been exploring the coast for four hours; however, they both felt as though they had only been out for twenty minutes. As the day wears on, the creatures become less distinct and the women decide to go talk to a biologist friend. He informs them of what their discovery was. The author comes to the realization that her new view on life is due to her new found environment. She gives the credit of her new discoveries to the island environment of O’ahu. She describes her discoveries and later applies her new found appreciation to her city life. The author takes her class to the zoo and the class sees monkeys tear a pigeon apart. She reminds them that it is a natural occurrence. They later see an alligator eat a low flying bird and she is reminded that she did not used to see the normal occurrences before her trip to the beach. She has altered her state of nature and place forever. She realizes that the natural world is far more simplistic and easier to understand than what she took for natural world before her trip to the ocean.

Paddle into Peace

Waves lap memories from the sand and pain from the soul

Something about the tranquil water is calming and all consuming

Fully immersed in the oceans calm grasp, I came to realize this.

Standing on the still water is a nervous experience

Begin to paddle and my stomach turns over and over

Slowly adjusting to the waters methodically irrational motion

My confidence begins to build and my mind becomes consume

Keeping the board propelled and afloat occupies every ounce of concentration

Then suddenly it becomes a natural task, as though my body was used to this.

Gaining speed and moving towards tranquility my muscles begin to relax

My mind begins to focus less on the task of riding the water and more on the water

Through the lenses of sunglasses the water seems magically textured and majestic

The dark section of ocean directly ahead is my goal and it is not far off.

The flatness of the ocean is reassuring and I bring the board to a halt

For a moment I stood and admired all that was in front of me

Then I realized it was not for comprehension, but for simple observation

It was placed by God for his children to enjoy and appreciate, not decipher

And suddenly calmness rushed over my mind and soul like the wave I just missed.

Prefield Experience #2

            Living in Georgia, winter is not the picturesque snow and cedar trees, but instead dead grass and wet leaves are the predominant setting for winter memories. Perhaps this is why my favorite winter memory is snow based. Last year, Jack Frost came in March and left a six inch signature. My entire family was sitting on our front porch imagining the forecasted snow, but not daring to speak of it for fear of jinxing the magical event. It was raining and my brother and I were walking in and out of the house due to immense boredom. “Do you think it will snow?” “Well Wes, if you keep asking, probably not”

“Really?”

“No.”

At that very moment, we walked outside and looked towards the cul-de-sac that is in front of our house and noticed that the rain was bouncing. I thought to myself, “Rain doesn’t bounce” and then realized that it had dropped a good 10 degrees since my last time on the porch. I smelled the air, it smelled like snow. Snow makes the air smell like an odd concoction of smoke and crisp, clean air. While it is a contradictory idea, it’s true. My mom was the first to spot a flake, we all thought maybe she was mistaken, or maybe it was a bird feather; however, then another followed, and another, and then another thousand behind that. As the snow continued to fall, our excitement grew. We then realized that it was not only falling, but also sticking and accumulating. I looked at my brother and we both had the same thought at the same time, “Jackets!” At that moment we both turned and ran to our respective rooms and emerged quite soon afterwards with jackets and hats on. We both ran down the stairs and were in the garage within ten seconds. We were met by my mom and dad and we put our shoes on and walked outside together. I felt the crunch under my shoe and that urge to slip and fall. I fought the urge and walked down the driveway to the front yard. The snow covered grass crunched with every step and the cold made its way through my jacket and I suddenly realized how cold it was. I looked up and watched the snow hit and stick to the pine trees; they were a picturesque scene, backed by a grey sky. Just as I began to fully appreciate the beauty of the trees; the back of my head was assaulted by a snowball thrown by my brother. I quickly returned fire and ran behind my truck and took cover. Soon my entire family was caught up and a snowball fight. After about fifteen minutes of snowballs plunking my truck and return fire, we stopped and realized it was beginning to snow much harder than before. We all recognized that we weren’t wearing nearly enough clothing to sustain such cold temperatures for very long. We walked back into the house and were hit by the warm air, realizing how cold we were, we all gathered by the fire crackling away in the fireplace and hung up our clothes to dry. We all enjoyed the snow, but perhaps we enjoyed being together and sharing an experience as a family even more.