Month: April 2022

Wednesday morning is foggy and chilly as we pull from the utility area in the park at 6:30am. My volunteer partner and I are embarking on the monthly elk count as citizen scientists for Rocky Mountain National Park. We collect data for the park’s elk and vegetation management plan.

Elk once roamed freely in the area. In the early 1900’s hunters extirpated the elk for the restaurants in Denver accommodating the growing residents and visitors on the front range. F.O. Stanley recognized a problem without wildlife for visitors to see in what was soon to become Rocky Mountain National Park. He imported a dozen elk from Yellowstone to Rocky to add to the tourism appeal of the area.

By the 1990’s, Stanley’s experiment was so successful that the elk population was larger, less migratory, and more concentrated than it had ever been. Plus, elk had few natural predators. By the early 2000’s, a proposed Elk and Vegetation plan aimed to cut the number of elk wintering in the park, regenerate aspen stands, and increase willow heights destroyed by too many grazing elk. Part of the plan is the regular monitoring of elk activity in the park and surrounding areas.

What could be more fun than going out early in the morning with the express purpose of looking for elk? Our citizen science role on those monthly counts is to find elk. Armed with a radio, binoculars, and spotting scope as well as a clipboard with the designated route and our data collection materials, we head out. If we see elk on the route, we stop and record the number; whether they are bulls, cows, yearlings, or calves; the numbers on any of the collars placed on cows for various research projects; and the location of the sightings.

The counts allow researchers to monitor the situation and make management changes as needed. Flexibility and adaptation are critical to establish desired future conditions for vegetation in the park and to oversee the elk population.

By design, the elk population is declining in the winter because they are migrating to lower elevations. The aspen and willow growth are coming back. With this growth, beavers are beginning to return to the park and create additional riparian areas. The progress is slow but finding the ecological balance that was badly disrupted is occurring.

I love the mornings I spend looking for elk and recording their characteristics and numbers. Anything about wildlife is dear to my heart, but I especially love making this contribution to science and to the recovery of an environment that can support a diversity of wildlife including elk, beavers, coyotes, and other native species.

I was listening to an interview on the radio and the guest talked about what brought him happiness and what brought him joy. I had never thought about the difference between the two.

I went online later to buy my duck tickets for the Estes Park Duck Race (an annual fund-raiser for non-profits in the community) and the landing page stated:

Joy . . . that feeling of wonderful delight you receive when you do something for others . . .and it ends up making you feel joyful as well! The essence of the Rotary Duck Race Festival is to support PEOPLE HELPING OTHER PEOPLE . . . Adopt a Duck…the more Duck Adoptions you purchase . . .the more JOY you spread around!

What IS the difference between happiness and joy? Both are emotions when one feels contentment or satisfaction. The difference may be based on the cause and the nature of the feeling. The distinction may or may not be important but interesting to consider.

Happiness can range from bliss to pleasure by luck or good fortune. Joy is stronger and less common, and usually results in feeling connected to a higher power or with people such as suggested by the intrinsic benefits of contributing to the Duck Race.

The causes of happiness usually are earthly experiences or objects–an outward expression of emotion in the moment. It can be experienced from any good activity, food, or company. I am happy, for example, biting into a juicy apple. Hearing a beautiful piece of music can make me happy.

Joy comes from caring for others, gratitude, and thankfulness. I feel joy when I volunteer at Rocky Mountain National Park. I feel joy when I am part of a group making music. Joy often is based on a spiritual or heartfelt connection. I am happy to see the first bluebird of spring; watching the birds swarming my feeders on a cold snowy day brings me joy.

Adela Rogers St. John suggested, “Joy seems to me a step beyond happiness—happiness is a sort of atmosphere you can live in sometimes when you’re lucky. Joy is a light that fills you with hope and faith and love.”

In these times, happiness and joy are elusive with the horrific world situation. Further, differentiating and defining happiness and joy may not be necessary. The purpose of life, however, is in living and finding happiness and joy regardless of what the day brings. I am grateful for the fleeting moments that make me smile, and even more grateful for the joyful opportunities to associate with other like-minded people as well as to connect with something greater than myself.

One of the binary assumptions that perplexes me is the idea of having only an introvert OR extrovert personality. I think about myself and the people I know/meet and where we fall on what I believe is a spectrum or continuum.

I would classify myself as an extroverted introvert. I was more extroverted when younger, but I have been mostly introverted much of my life. This personality may explain why I like to sit alone and write. I would never be described as the life of any party. On the other hand, I like parties (for a while) and I enjoy being social.

Continuum:

Introvert——————-KH———————-NR–Extrovert

Research says that genes influence one’s personality. I am a product of a mom who was more extroverted than introverted and a father who was quite introverted and shy. I like that I have both of their traits. In the big picture, however, I am more like my dad. Nevertheless, personalities also are shaped by life experiences.

Not all introverts or extroverts are the same because most of us are a mixture of both. Introverts, however, are generally reserved. I like to be with people, and I need time away to recharge. I like small groups of people. I can assume leadership when necessary and I am also glad for others to lead if they are headed in (what I consider) the right direction. I do not turn down invitations to social gatherings, as I know I will enjoy one-on-one conversations. I prefer more meaningful discourses than small talk. I often need time to think and reflect before I speak.

The writing life involves spending time alone. I do not work well in crowded environments, and I prefer writing at home, at my desk, rather than being in a coffee shop or even at an office. I like being “in my head.” I favor calm, minimally stimulating settings.

I wish I was more extroverted, but over the years I have learned to surround myself with extroverts and the pressure is taken off to be in the spotlight. I appreciate my friends regardless of where they are on this continuum. One reason I have been thinking about extroversion and introversion is because of the recent passing of a dear friend who was an extroverted extrovert.

I admired Nina (NR) in many ways because of her extroversion. She was an outgoing passionate person who naturally drew people to her. She liked being the center of attention and that served her well in getting things done and inspiring others. Being who she was did not mean that she did not think deeply and have meaningful relationships. She exuded her enthusiasm as a true extrovert. It feels like just a little less energy in the universe today. My introverted self will miss this wonderful, extroverted friend.

When I was growing up, I used to play Cowboys and Indians with the neighbor boys. I always wanted to be an “Indian.”  American Indians intrigued me. I also did not have a saddle for my Appaloosa, so I had to ride bareback like they did on the TV shows and movies. I had a stereotyped picture of Indigenous people, but my interest in native cultures has grown over the years.

The movement to provide acknowledgements for Indigenous peoples heartens me. I was introduced to recognizing First Nation peoples when I attended a conference in Australia years ago. Since then, I have thought often about the people that inhabited the world’s lands before white people colonized these areas. I am increasingly aware of the significance of Native Americans in the West. I want to honor the Indigenous peoples everywhere I have lived.

Acknowledgements and reparations cannot make up for the treatment of these peoples. However, I want to remember the groups who came before me who aimed to preserve this natural world so I could enjoy it today.

I learned a little about Native Americans (Ioway, Sauk and Meskwaki, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ) in my 8^th grade Iowa history class. Iowa is named for the Ioway people. I worked as a professional 4-H Youth Leader in Tama County, Iowa, upon graduating from college. Tama County is home to the Sauk and Meskwaki Indians who were pushed from their lands and later were able to return by buying back the land. This work experience first exposed me to an understanding of “culture” that continues to inform my thinking.

I lived in Minnesota (Wahpekute, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ) and Wisconsin (Kiikaapoi-Kickapoo, Peoria, Sauk and Meskwaki, Myaamia, Hoocąk-Ho-Chunk, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ) and knew nothing about the Indigenous people who were native to those states. I did not know that land names came from the native people who once occupied the area. For example, Wisconsin (originally “Meskonsing”) is the English spelling of a French version of a Miami Indian name for the Wisconsin River that runs through the state. Minnesota is a Dakota name. Mni is the native word for water.

In northern Texas (Kiikaapoi-Kickapoo, Tawakoni, Wichita) I was not exposed to anything related to Indigenous people. My experiences were similar in North Carolina (Shakori, Occaneechi, Saponi, Lumbee).

I now call home the landscape where the Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Núu-agha-tʉvʉ-pʉ̱ (Ute) people lived and continue to live. They were nomadic in the area, but summers especially in what is now Rocky Mountain National Park, provided traditional hunting grounds.

Acknowledging the history is important but more important is remembering that American Indians are present today. Reflecting on Indigenous cultures challenges me to respect the land and preserve natural environments as these people did for centuries.

If you want to know Indigenous people who once lived in an area, you can go to https://native-land.ca/