Here in the central and northern reaches of New Hampshire, the weather rules and regulates the lives and fortunes of its residents – this is tourist country.Businesses are dependent upon the vagaries of nature, whether it be balmy sunshine in the summer to warm the waters of deep spring-fed lakes; or, whether it be a consistent cold during winter to bring and to build the dense snowpack that beckons skiers north on I-93.
It’s good to get away, however briefly, from the highly populated eastern seaboard, and from the illusion which it tends to create that man is in complete control of his destiny. Less people, more space, and more time outdoors away from the large population centers of the BosWash corridor bring out a respect for the impact of nature.
It would be naïve and foolish to deny the significant progress which civilization has built up over the centuries; but, it would be just as foolish to deny how utterly irrational civilization has been in the destruction which it has brought upon itself through sloth, uncaring, and warfare.
We have built great economic systems and erected magnificent building and construction projects. But the mountains and valleys built by nature will survive long after the street canyons of cities like Manhattan and elsewhere in the world have disappeared.
Perhaps with a little common sense, less greed, and a touch of wisdom, our leaders could improve our economic and social systems and make them last a little longer.
(Photo by Dick Bergeron, Franconia Notch, N.H., August 4, 2009)
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