Greetings from Yosemite National Park

Being alone in a crowded place like Yosemite Valley is to really feel alone. Traveling solo has its advantages in that there are no arguments over timetables, schedules, meal choices and the like. On the other hand, our species tends toward gregariousness—sharing is fundamental. My attempts at being friendly at Yosemite Valley, however, were generally not reciprocated. A lone wolf is often viewed warily—“He’s alone. There must be something wrong with him. Serial killers are usually alone.” Perhaps Yosemite Valley would have had softer edges if I were with a companion or group. Entering the relatively quiet Yosemite Museum, I finally connected with another human being—Phil Johnson, a Miwok Indian descendant. He was interpreting his people’s traditional ways of knapping flint, crafting bows and arrows, and using a spear-throwing device known as an atlatl. The Miwok inhabited the region for four thousand years, and some still live in the valley. How did these first settlers view all the changes? By comparison, I was just a temporary drifter, a spark off a cliff. Phil asked how I was doing. He winced a little when I told him I felt frazzled from the congestion. He motioned for me to sit. Deliberately, he began handing me items from his culture. “These are obsidian arrow points,” he said, as I turned over the shiny black glass-like points. “And these are the arrow shafts we used.” Just feeling these objects, I began to breath deeper. After carefully examining one object, Phil would hand me another. I liked his form of therapy. He put spears in my hand, split and woven baskets of several types, deer antlers, and leather goods. A simpler way of life seeped through my fingertips. Sustainability—that’s what the Miwok had, and what our modern culture was largely lacking. That doesn’t mean we have to chip arrow points again. We just have to slow down, innovate, and learn to live with less. Phil was a rock in a swift stream, a welcome ambassador of sanity. I left the valley feeling better,

Sincerely,
Doug