Open Space is Valuable, but It’s Slowly Disappearing

I’m learning not to take nature for granted

Mesa Arch, with Washerwoman Arch in the background in Utah’s Canyonlands National Park. Photo by Stephen Walker on Unsplash

While I was attending Utah State University, I found a quiet spot upstairs in a library to study. The library was on campus and it was one of my favorite places. The desks I found were located on the 4th floor. I always took the stairs.

There was a framed poster hanging on the wall just above the first flight of stairs. The picture featured Mesa Arch, shown in the photo above. The arch sits at the very edge of the mesa top, above a 2,000 drop into the canyons below. This arch faces east and it catches the rising sun perfectly. The entire underside of the arch turns a brilliant orange as the sun rises.

The picture was beautiful, but it was the quote below that caught my attention. Every time I climbed those stairs, I made it a point to look at the picture and read the text.

“The deserts should never be reclaimed. They are the breathing-spaces of the West and should be preserved forever.” John C. Van Dyke

I took open space for granted

I grew up in Northeastern Utah, in small town called Vernal. I was familiar with sagebrush and dry rocky soil, mountains…