F R O M   T H E   D I R E C T O R

REFLECTIONS...Tom Bailey

As the terrible events of September 11 began to unfold, I was on my way to meet with a board member in Charlevoix. I heard about the first attack in a radio news bulletin on my way to the meeting, and learned the full extent of the horror as I headed back to the Conservancy office. Driving the familiar route along the Lake Michigan shore and US 31, everything looked the same but felt much different. That surreal feeling was accentuated by the presence of a single aircraft: a US Air Force spotter plane circling the Big Rock Point nuclear plant site. The presence of that lone plane made it clear that a national emergency was unfolding.

I drove to Lansing that night in order to attend a meeting of the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund Board the following day. Though I was greatly tempted to stay home, I decided in the face of all the horror and death that the best response would be to work toward something good, noble and life-affirming. It seemed to me that the conservation of land for future generations is one of the most life-affirming things I could do.

I noticed long lines at gasoline stations on my way downstate. Driving through Lansing on what would normally have been a busy evening, it seemed that I had arrived in a ghost town; there was no one out and about. Checking into my hotel, I saw that the big screen television in the hotel bar, usually tuned to sporting events, was showing the news. The crowd was not the usual sports fans; everyone was concerned about the events of the day and hungry for word of what was happening. It was on that big screen that I first saw the awful videotape of what had happened earlier in the day.

The next morning, after a moment of silence, an unprecedented amount of money was committed by the Trust Fund to several once-in-a-lifetime land projects across our state that will be appreciated for generations. Two major ones are right here in the North Country. Meanwhile, the impact of September 11 reverberated around the world. We saw heroes at work and began to develop a new perspective on what really matters. Our nation rallied around its flag and its soul. Driving home to the North, I had many opportunities to reflect upon all the implications of the events and while I don‘t know that I will ever understand what drives people to commit acts of terror, I was proud to watch the American people respond to these horrible events with a groundswell of mutual support, compassion and courage.

Some of the most stirring moments unfolded as the moving strains of “America the Beautiful” and “God Bless America” echoed across the country. Those words and melodies, with their references to the beauty of our land, reminded me of how important it is to recognize that the American spirit grows and flourishes as a creation not only of our people but also of this beautiful land itself.

It is impossible, after all, to think of Americans without America. Native and immigrant alike, our people’s lives and livelihoods have been built from the bounty of the land. From the gold that drew the Forty Niners west to the steel that held up the twin towers of the World Trade Center, our land’s resources have made it possible for us to build a great nation. And our spirit, inspired by this rich and beautiful land, has made it possible for us to cure diseases and fly to the moon. We are thus united by both our unique spirit and our common link to the land. The America we know and love proceeds from a uniquely diverse yet united people, and from a great and beautiful land that spans “from the mountains to the prairies,” “from sea to shining sea.”

As a new wave of patriotism sweeps across our nation and unites our people, let us celebrate the America that is both its people and its land. Let us work to preserve, protect and defend both from the forces that would bring hurt and harm to us all. Let us assure our grandchildren’s grandchildren’s grandchildren that they will inherit from us not only an American character that is sound and fair and solid, but also a land that still holds for them the beauty, bounty and majesty that our great-grandparents beheld: the wild and beautiful land that inspired its people to greatness.

Generations from now, those who will enjoy the areas protected by the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund Board on September 12 will probably not associate them with the events of September 11. For that, I am in many ways glad. The beauty and magnificence of nature will endure even as the terrible shadow that was cast across our land is obliterated by a new and ever brighter light.

Each of us will respond in our own way to what began to unfold on September 11. For me, the response will be to “take increased devotion,” as President Lincoln said, from what has happened and to work even harder to protect America, the land that I love.