It is not enough to weep for our lost landscapes; we have to put our hands in the earth to make ourselves whole again. Even a wounded world is feeding us. Even a wounded world holds us, giving us moments of wonder and joy. I choose joy over despair. Not because I have my head in the sand, but because joy is what the earth gives me daily and I must return the gift.
The Earth is what we all have in common. It is what we are made of and what we live from, and we cannot damage it without damaging those with whom we share it. There is an uncanny resemblance between our behavior toward the earth and our behavior towards people. By some connection we do not recognize, the willingness to exploit one becomes the willingness to exploit the other… It is impossible to care for each other more or differently than we care for the earth.
Wendell Berry