Arts & Entertainment
Reflections: Intention
Published
5 years agoon
Posted By
Outlaw PartnersBy Kathy Bouchard EBS CONTRIBUTOR
Winter approaches. The meat has been cured, the hay bailed and stacked for the animals. The bounty of the land has been harvested and stored away to be doled out through the cold days and long nights with care. The wilderness stills, the wildlife endures in sleep or privation, eking out survival as best they can. In the rhythm of the seasons, details may have changed or faded, but the feeling is still one of reflection and drawing in, becoming quiet as we contemplate the past year and how to apply ourselves to the next.
This past summer, while driving home late in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, with the 5-year-olds, after feasting on burgers and berry pie, I gasped in surprise. “Look at the fireflies!”
As we drove through the shady streets, the girls ooohed and ahhhed, until finally, out of the car, Daddy caught one of the flickering creatures. It took me back to childhood, playing ghost in the graveyard in the lingering twilight, and getting distracted by the fairy light glow of the insects. Fireflies are memories I have missed while spending the last 20 years living in Montana.
Today, as with much of the insect population of the United States, fireflies, butterflies and honeybees are disappearing at alarming rates. Because of their role as pollinators, this means food production is also endangered. The insects are not alone. The Audubon Society reports that two-thirds of North American birds are at risk because of habitat loss, and that many of them may go extinct in the next 100 years. Those memories I mentioned above are already half a century old. I wonder what memories the grandchildren of my grandchildren will have in the next half century.
Yet we in Montana live among creatures once at the brink of extinction. Bald eagles, grizzly bears and wolves have been restored to parts of their historic ranges thanks to the application of the Endangered Species Act and scientists and individuals dedicated to their survival. We value wilderness or we wouldn’t live in a rare place that supports all the megafauna that existed in the Greater Yellowstone area 12,000 years ago. From across the world, people throng to see the elk, bison and wolves, simple testimony to their inestimable value. Our truth is that nature is wealth.
As gratitude for this achievement fills us, the future abounds with challenges that we can read about every day. This space has briefly explored solar energy, dark sky preservation and plastic reduction. Other topics will soon be discussed. But now, as the long nights of contemplation approach, as we recount the past year and assess our lives, perhaps there is room to expand that commitment to nature.
There are more ways than can be stated, just choose something, and make no small plans. Dig up a part of your lawn and plant native species that will invite bees and butterflies, write your congressman about wilderness expansion, buy your first electric vehicle (I’m contemplating my second), research an organization that benefits nature and donate, try more plant-based recipes. The possibilities, mundane or imaginative, are endless. Act with intention.
“Never doubt that a small group of committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” The words of Margaret Mead, written in a time when vastly more wildlife and vastly fewer humans roamed the planet, are still inspiring, but the need is great, and more citizens are required. Yet, here in Montana, we already have a model to inspire us.
Kathy Bouchard is a member of the Rotary Club of Big Sky’s Sustainability Committee. She has been a Montana resident for 20 years and is inspired to work for sustainability on behalf of her grandchildren.
The Outlaw Partners is a creative marketing, media and events company based in Big Sky, Montana.
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CALL FOR ARTISTS: Paint anytime from June 1-28EXHIBITION & SALE: June 29 - July 31Calling all artists and nature enthusiasts! Get
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CALL FOR ARTISTS: Paint anytime from June 1-28
EXHIBITION & SALE: June 29 – July 31
Calling all artists and nature
enthusiasts! Get your paintbrushes ready for an unforgettable experience at
Paint Under the Big Sky, a thrilling plein air event set against the stunning
backdrop of Big Sky, MT, Chet Huntley’s “The Last Best Place”. Don’t
miss this chance to unleash your creativity and be part of a vibrant artistic community.
What is Paint Under the Big Sky? PUBS is a plein air event for all painters of any ability (over the age of 16). Sponsored by the Big Sky Artist’s Studio & Gallery and the Big Sky Artists Collective, a non-profit organization whose mission is to foster a strong community of artists in the Big Sky area, the paint-out hopes to introduce painters to our extraordinary landscape for an opportunity to create, meet and have fun. Plein air painters record our landscape for generations to come.
Artists are invited to travel to Big
Sky, MT to paint anytime between Jun 1 – 28, and participate in the exhibition
and sale of paintings from June 29 – July 31.
Come join us! We have a great
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June 1 (Saturday) 1:00 am - July 31 (Wednesday) 11:55 pm
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Embrace the freedom and serenity of movement in nature with our rejuvenating morning yoga class on the Mountain Lawn. Allow the fresh mountain air and gentle guided yoga practice
Event Details
Embrace the freedom and
serenity of movement in nature with our rejuvenating morning yoga class on the
Mountain Lawn. Allow the fresh mountain air and gentle guided yoga practice to
invigorate your day of adventure ahead. Complimentary. Weather
permitting.
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June 1 (Saturday) 7:00 am - August 31 (Saturday) 7:00 am
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Montage Big Sky
995 Settlement Trail
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Bike Big Sky is a FREE community mountain biking group with BSCO and Gallatin Alpine Sports. Meet at posted locations at 6 p.m. Monday evenings. Visit BSCO.org or swing by
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Bike Big Sky is a FREE community mountain biking group with BSCO and Gallatin Alpine Sports. Meet at posted locations at 6 p.m. Monday evenings. Visit BSCO.org or swing by GAS for ride information.
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June 10 (Monday) 6:00 pm - August 19 (Monday) 6:00 pm
Event Details
Bike Big Sky is a FREE community mountain biking group with BSCO and Gallatin Alpine Sports. Meet at posted locations at 6 p.m. Monday evenings. Visit BSCO.org or swing by
Event Details
Bike Big Sky is a FREE community mountain biking group with BSCO and Gallatin Alpine Sports. Meet at posted locations at 6 p.m. Monday evenings. Visit BSCO.org or swing by GAS for ride information.
Time
June 17 (Monday) 6:00 pm - August 26 (Monday) 6:00 pm