Somewhere in our collective human soul we harbor a memory of Eden. The mundane of every day life may suggest that we can separate ourselves from the source of our being. But the memory of our origins, the connection of body and soul to the landscape lingers in our dreams. Wilderness provides space to reconnect with that sense of place. Especially today, on the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act, we give a thankful nod to those stewards before us who were wise enough to know and appreciate the importance of wilderness to the human spirit.
How do you measure the value of the haunting cry of a loon, the wolf chorus at dusk? How do you measure the value of locking eyes with a bear, or walking a caribou highway? What is the value of a dollar bill against the snowstorm? The legacy of US park and wilderness systems is one that places a tangible net worth on wild lands and the creatures that live there. It elevates human experience and opportunity to it's rightful place as a value added commodity. In our broken economy of here today and the hell with tomorrow, our commitment to wilderness is a touchstone of integrity. The greatest challenge of the generation before us was to designate wild spaces and the greatest challenge for us now is to keep them intact.
