Resistance is Futile: Embracing the Landscape Under the Stars
As the relentless pull of gravity guides water down a creek, so too am I drawn by the power of imagination to wander down a familiar gravel road. In Wendell Berry's insightful essay, "A Native Hill," he elegantly articulates the distinction between a road and a path:
"The difference between a path and a road is not only the obvious one. A path is little more than a habit that comes with knowledge of a place. It is a sort of ritual of familiarity. As a form, it is a form of contact with a known landscape. It is not destructive. It is the perfect adaptation, through experience and familiarity, of movement to place; it obeys the natural contours; such obstacles as it meets it goes around."
By this definition, and despite my chosen mode of transportation, this road feels much more like a path. My familiarity with this place has not diminished my sense of wonder; even knowing the view that awaits around the next bend, I am compelled to experience it anew. Berry suggests that roads often resist the landscape, seeking to avoid direct contact. This primitive road, however, chooses a different approach. It embraces the terrain, carrying my love for wild places and the allure of starry night skies deeper into the heart of the landscape.
I often wonder why anyone would resist the call of a path, any path, that leads us away from the rush of everyday life and towards the profound solace offered by the natural world. It's in these moments, on these paths, that we truly connect with the earth and the cosmos above.
Technical Details:
- Camera: Nikon D850
- Lens: Sigma Art 20mm 1.4
- Settings: ISO 4000, f/2.5, 13 seconds
- Processing: 10 light and 30 dark images stacked in Starry Landscape Stacker and processed in Lightroom Classic CC.
