And

like I mentioned before, you know, I was definitely I was not happy to be there on my first visit.

I'd gotten a DUI, but in my, you know, rationalizing mind i got hit by three um underage you know under 21 uh sorority girls that were leaving cotton eye joe's this is back um and sorry for you non-locals but you know back when they were doing the construction on the the bridge over over interstate 40 at level road right there they had it down to two lanes my buddy jeremy and i we'd been out drinking that night i was driving And it hadn't been a particularly wild night, but these three college girls were leaving Cotton Eye Joe's around midnight.

They had the bridge cut down to two lanes and we hit head on going about, I was going about 45 and they were going about 50.

So that tried and true Subaru thing, they were in a Subaru and I was in an old 86 BMW 3 Series that didn't have any airbags.

You know, I broke my femur.

I shattered a kneecap.

you know,

David C.

I was just really struck by the Gary Snyder and Ginsberg's translation of the fourth vow that you read, Melissa.

Nature's way is beautiful.

I vow to become it.

I think something like that.

And it reminded me of how in our culture, and it overtakes me all the time, how we think of nature as something that's out there separate from us, you know, like, well, I'm going to go on a nature walk out in nature somewhere.

And, uh, Every once in a while, it strikes me to remind myself that, you know, I'm nature.

lawnmower.