what’s good
Top ten good things about yellowstone
admission is minimal
seeing is priceless
everyone is invited
cellphones don’t work
nature is accessible
rules keep people safe
our democracy got something right
snow in May
slow speed limits
earth has control valves
what’s a life lesson
Remember when you were a kid and you heard the ice cream truck coming down the street? First thing I did was calculate how far away this magical truck was from me. Then I decided if I had enough time to run to my house, get money, and make it back to the truck. Lastly, I went for it. For me, going to Yellowstone was a little like that. I heard and listened to my heart say “you gotta go.” Then I calculated the costs, the time, my desire. Finally, I went for it. The experiences of catching the ice cream truck is one of a kind for me, as obviously my trip to Yellowstone. But the life lesson is this: Don’t miss a chance to “go for it.”
what’s worth remembering
Everything is worth remembering. As much as I want my complex memory to retrieve every moment, it will not. Sure, taking photos and notes on my phone will guide me to my Yellowstone memories, but they will never take the place of me after that trip. It is supremely true: you can’t un-see something that you saw. I am not wired to see a rainbow and not think about one at the foot of the Lower Falls, or see any image of a bison and not feel the shock of being close to one, or boil water and not picture one of the thermal pools. How trips affect us is unknown until we return. For me, remembering Yellowstone will often be involuntary and deliberately voluntary.