CAN WE SAVE THE WOLF? - New Mexico Wilderness Alliance

“There are things
worth fighting for
and that is just what
I intend to do.”
By Neolina Hein
As a young person, it is easy to
be amazed by everything that’s
offered. Learning to drive invites
the prospect of acquiring a car,
iPods can cut out the entire
world and cell phones can provide
a conversation no matter
where we wander. It’s easy to
understand how distracted teenagers
are, from where we sit, a
lot of the world remains undiscovered,
and as we take tentative
steps forward a lot goes
unexamined. We slowly open
our eyes and hear the voices
speaking out in our hearts. I am
a sixteen-year-old girl who is
more than aware of how easily
being caught in between two
worlds can be.
Recently, I moved from a large
public high school to a smaller,
more college oriented charter
high school. As a part of my
graduation requirements, I am
instructed to complete a volunteer
service project. At first, this
seemed like another assignment
to keep me busy, or just another
task to complete but as the
school year progressed, I grew
into the idea.
Wasn’t there something I
was passionate about? Wasn’t
there something that filled me
with the drive to want to make
a difference? Of course there
was. Throughout my life, I was
always hungry for the outdoors.
I loved animals; I loved the
sounds of shifting gravel and
sand beneath my feet. I loved
seeing the side of the world that
remained unharmed by man’s
thirst for technological advancement—or
in some cases, the
inability to progress. I loved
the part of the world that was
always what it had been—only
changing naturally. Though it
has taken me some time to
fully realize, I now know that
it is necessary to preserve the
fundamentals of life in order to
have a firm grasp on where we
stand in the scheme of things.
The natural world is humbling
and equally empowering.
Nature has always given me
a sense of balance. For every
noise there is a silence and for
every death there is a birth. I
have always had a sense of
peace in the quiet existence of
Earth (as it stands, we humans
are the loud ones) and I have
always felt more alive, more
aware and more fulfilled away
from the city and all of our cars,
airplanes and small electronic
annoyances, no matter how
“necessary” they seem. But
there is one reality that must
be faced. My sanctuaries, these
places I share with so many
other people and native wildlife,
are rapidly disappearing and filling
up with illegal roads for dirt
bikers, beer bottles and bullet
shell casings. Moreover, what
can we look forward to—highways,
housing developments
and more garbage?
It now seems to me that there
really are things worth fighting
for and beginning this servicelearning
program has helped
me see this. I cannot sit idly
and watch as the world is being
drained of its most simplistic
peace, beauty and balance.
Something must be done.
There can never be too many
advocates for nature, because
the natural world is the fundamental
base for life, as we
know it. There is more history in
the raw Earth than in any textbook.
In nature, we can see our
past, present and future. That is
worth protecting. The Earth has
sustained as long as we have
existed and I truly believe that
we have a duty to uphold her
beauty and her dignity instead
of simply taking advantage of
what we have and choosing the
most destructive paths, though
they may be the most profitable.
If we lose sight of where
we’ve come from and stop
being curious about the beauty
of the Earth’s mystery then how
can we understand who we are
and who we will become?
Struggling to find yourself and
your
niche
is no
easy
task,
but
just as
the sun
peaks
over
the
mountains
and
looks
down
upon
us,
we all
slowly
fit into
the
larger
and
greater
picture
of the
puzzle,
easing
toward
a destiny
of sorts. So, through my
high school (Amy Biehl High
School), I have crawled through
my own complacency and mistrust
of the future to a horizon
Howl for
Wolves!
that may just inspire me to fight
for it tooth and nail.
There are things worth fighting
for and that is just what I intend
to do.
Visit
www.SaveSouthwestWolves.org
to learn more about
reintroduction of the
Mexican wolf, sign up to
get the latest updates,
and learn how you can
get more involved.
A project of Defenders of Wildlife
Page 22 Summer 2006