the real thing

On the subject of authenticity, is it more interesting to get out in nature, or to see nature portrayed in a theme park? Perhaps for some it might make no difference. To see a waterfall emerging from a rock, driven by a huge electric pump may excite some. But when you know it is fake can you really get as fired up about it? School is kind of the same way. Kids know school is processed and homogenized fake learning and when you know you are being manipulated some resistance seems to form.

Yesterday before driving home from Russellville, we visited a park in a nearby Ozark wilderness area. Seeing the pedestal rocks on the Kings Bluff Trail is worth the drive and hike. We shared the trail with a group of college students on an outing from Springfield, Missouri. There are lots and lots of these pedestals along the bluff line, so even with students climbing all over there was plenty of space for us to quietly admire the view. The pedestals are interesting even if you don't bother to climb down to the base. The students climbed down one tree and up another to get down to explore beneath the formations. We took the rugged trail at the end that was however, much easier than climbing up and down trees.

The experience of spending an afternoon out in nature leaves you feeling like this:

I am adding one more view of the table I delivered on Friday. I'm not sure that some people understand the feelings that can arise in a person involved in creative work. For me, it helps that I am using materials that convey a sense of authenticity... Real solid woods that grew in the nearby forests of Arkansas. Use of these materials connects both the maker and user with the beauty of wilderness as shown in the photo above.