71. Forests

           There are zillions of things that I like about the forest. In the United States I am particularly fond of the fact that so much of that forest, especially here in Idaho, is national forest. Now I’m not going to lie and say I always agree with how national forests are managed, but I am glad that they are there for multiple use, for people like me to go out and get huckleberries, firewood or Christmas trees.

            Forests bring us clean air and beauty. Sunlight shining through the deciduous forests of Vermont or evergreen forests of Idaho is my real love. Forests and trees bring a sense of freedom and wildness that I cherish, and this country has a myriad of forest lands that we can use for our recreation, our sport and quite often our livelihoods. And no one person owns the national forests, we all do. Every person from rural wooded New Hampshire to urban Los Angeles has a part of it. So we need to enjoy those forests and use them for their inestimable value to us, not abuse them for temporal gain.