“It’s such a white, powdery world. I wasn’t sure that first mile, if breaking trail had been a good decision. Looks nice, but the treachery of crusty snow is legendary. At one point, I slid back on one ski, and it wasn’t good. I had to call on a greater power, to see me to the top, which was the first hurdle. I’m familiar with the terrain. But saplings have been let to grow, making a maze of nearly impassable thicket, where before, there was meadow. I can’t complain. It’s not my land. Being virtually the only person to ski a certain set of confusing hills for 20 years, doesn’t give you the right to make land management decisions. Ditto, the child glued to a television watching JFK’s coffin, unable to find a channel free of it. We’re not in charge. The powers that be project authority and validation, whether they deserve it or not. It’s why I’d rather take my chances and gamble that I’m up to doing unbelievable things. After sunset, I knew I was safe and hadn’t died trying. I was so grateful. No Nor’easter winds, no harsh precipitation, no major catastrophes on the trail. Only a final mile on the flat where Herb had dusted ash & made it hard to ski. But that’s completely reasonable. There are times you pit yourself against the odds and take it on the chin. And there are times you hardly deserve the love & the pacifying support of every good person in your neighborhood who is looking out for your inevitable folly. So when I met this animal track on the highest point of the hill, I stopped to admire the workmanship. I stopped in mid stride, or whatever a ski step is called, to ponder the time & place into which I was intruding. I was a little anxious, as the sun was setting. I was a little worried, that I might confuse myself, and lose the trail. But such surety as comes with coyote feet or foxes, it’s a message to settle down. To tamp down the rhetoric of what we think we think is true. To trust the senses, keep skis pointed in the logical direction, and apply musculature to the operation at hand. Okay, mixed messages. You are a construct. We, the people, are the majority. Right or left, massively influenced by media on this side or that, we all want the same thing if you can wrap your mind around the blasphemy of such a notion. Just one dedicated trajectory across pristine wilderness by a beast, is coded with truth. That we are sovereign, and harmonized with the blessed earth. End of story, but hopefully - not.”
