Ok, it isn’t much of a photo. I was strolling in the woods behind my place yesterday and spotted this bull moose. Unfortunately all I had with me was my phone, so this was the best I could do. 

  He was enjoying some peace and tranquility amidst the snowy woods, safe for the moment from marauding hunters. So don’t ask me where this photo was taken ‘cause this majestic fella has a big bullseye pasted to his flanks for another month or so. 

  This gal’s a little smarter. Hunting isn’t permitted in town so she gets to leave the bullseye at the edge. 

  I relish my walks in the forested hills, knowing full well a hundred years ago they were teeming with animal life. Elk, moose and deer, not to mention black and grizzly bears (sometime predators, rarely prey), plus the predators that derived their livelihood from them and the smaller forest dwellers, wolves, coyotes, foxes, cougars, wolverines and badgers. A great fluid melange of dynamically balanced Life. 

  That’s mostly gone now, the teeming animal life and the balance. 

  And how can we, I ask, the agents of that lost balance, hope to find and regain balance in ourselves and our communities moving forward? 

  Aah, an unanswerable question at this point in time. 

  I finish my walk with a smile on my face, content to return to my little Mountain Hermit’s Hut to take up again the neglected task of the Omphalos Cafe. 

  And I’ll never stop repeating….

  Life is ALL there is!