Golden Ghosts

Everybody wants a piece of paradise, A house upon a hill, and a view of heaven. Elegiac lyrics to “Paradise Lost” by the musical duo Storyhill mourn the domestication of the vibe, vistas, elbow room, and rural character of gorgeous Western towns such as Bozeman and Missoula, Montana. Among the swales, kettle ponds, forested draws and [...]

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Montana Mantra

Powder ski days Blue skies, puffy clouds Rushing mountain streams Napping outdoors Plunging, though rarely lingering, in healing Montana waters Nurturing passions and dreams Tubing and hanging on the Clark Fork and Blackfoot rivers Living close to Yellowstone and Glacier Hula-hooping Live music in a smoke-free environment Dancing Sleeping in and snuggling Fat lazy breakfasts [...]

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Happy Earth Day 2009

Earth Day is 39 years old now, perhaps the equivalent of a lightning strike in time compared to the actual age of the one planet we all call home. Wherever you stand, be the soul for that place. I am unsure whether Rumi meant that place where we are standing right now, or to taking [...]

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Nature Doesn’t Care

Nature doesn’t care who you are, What you think, What you do, How much you make, Who you sleep with, Who you vote for. But Nature does await your attention, Your presence, Your humility, Your respect, Your connection. Lives hang in the balance. In Nature, everything has value, A reason for being, A niche and [...]

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The Primal Call

Author’s Note: I did a lot of spring cleaning over the past week, and came across some older poems from earlier in the decade.  “The Primal Call” was inspired by a silent walk taken the last morning of a five-day retreat in southwest Montana. Nearly four years later, its message resonates with  urgency and accuracy… [...]

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I Said Hey Bear, Take A Walk on Missoula’s Wild Side

It’s amazing how much has changed in just the past week. The snow atop Cha-paa-qn Peak (a Salish Indian term meaning treeless or shining peak) west of Missoula has already diminished in depth, while some of the trees here in town are just beginning to bud. South-facing lawns are greening up, their north-facing cousins still [...]

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Who’s Stalking Who, Part Two

Shit. I slid into a deeper side pool, wondering whether the rushing water and swirling steam would mask my presence. If  it didn’t, I hoped that whatever was approaching would at least tolerate my unannounced intrusion in their prime winter habitat. The sight of a 400-plus pound cow elk towering several feet above me as [...]

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Who’s Stalking Who?

A lot of hunters and tourists in the Rocky Mountain region would love to be within shooting distance of an elk. Every year in Greater Yellowstone, a fortunate number of legal hunters outside the world’s first national park, as well as camera-laden visitors within its boundaries, get their wish, yet sometimes elk target humans instead. [...]

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