The lost tribe of Winnebagos

I'm currently reading a history of the Native American people, "Bury my heart at Wounded Knee" by Dee Brown, an old classic, and I was interested to read that there was once an eastern tribe called Winnebagos. Well the humans are unfortunately all gone I believe but there is a new tribe of behemoths to carry their name forward. It is unceasingly amazing the size of some of these things - half of htem seem larger than my old apartment in Campderdown. The length and breadth of a bus, they have hydraulic 'rooms' that pop out of the sides when parked, automatic awnings and portable satellite dishes. And some then tow a car or SUV behind them, in addition to boats, canoes, bikes or trailers with goodness knows what else inside. How can people own so much stuff? How can people afford so much stuff? And how do they justify hauling it across a giant continent and back?

Evenings are amusing, as we sit outside in the soft evening air, by the fire, watching the starts, and from the RVs there's be the hum of air con and the flicker of a blue screen through the lace curtained window. Just like at home. A chacun son gout. To each their own I guess.

Wildness

Wildness. We all need a little bit of it in our lives. Being out in the wilderness, being dwarfed by surroundings formed by more powerful forces than you could ever fathom. Being conscious of how you move through the landscape, ever conscious of a very real predator (bears). It makes you feel so very alive.

As Robert Redford once said in describing his beloved Montana, "places that hold the power to feed our souls and inspire our being are few and far between".

A famous local author, Edward Abbey, wrote that "wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit". I cannot help but agree.