Heritage Park
Denise C. Parmenter
Excessive toxins easily alter the earth’s frail and aesthetic environment.
From these impurities our oxygen, animal life, and fresh water have been
contaminated. The threat and proof of this disruption of the
eco-equilibrium has drawn the attention of legislators across the U.S. and
the globe to stretch their heavy-handed laws, and preserve its natural form.
‘Sherlock’ biologists count twigs and rummage through nests searching
for red ragged clues of habitat disturbances. Sentinel-binocular watcher’s
spend years learning mating, nurturing and egg-laying patterns. But what of
the offspring of man? Who is watching and defining his habitat needs? If
man is the keeper, shouldn’t his needs be distinguished and protected?
Mans’ environmental needs have not been well defined. In March 2000,
a Congressional Committee addressed home owners’ needs and described
housing as priorities of our nation should include... access to affordable
housing that is safe, clean and healthy.” That’s it; there is no more elaboration in a one hundred and seventy-five page document on the definition of
safe, clean and healthy. The clarification is up to the reader. If left to motherin-laws, most of us would not pass for safe, clean or healthy.
Quality of air, water and food has specific standards, but
land-preferential boundaries do not exist. Boundaries are identified for
birds, plants and animals; spring geraniums are planted four inches apart,
breath taking osprey birds require three miles of snag treetops and ferocious
ebony bears need one side of the mountain to themselves. But mortals
cannot decide what they need; big city dwellers and quaint town citizens
feud over definition of land wants and needs. One side maintains that too
much unused land creates long drawn out commutes to work, the other
side claims a country gentleman’s’ livelihood is directly portioned to the size
of his property holdings. There is no need to settle differences between
these two parties, but rather ask what of the children who live in cities with
little or no authentic experience of wild life. This sort of practical experiment takes the place of volumes of textbook study.
In recent years, juvenile rehabilitation has experienced much success in
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behavior modification, by plopping troubled youth in wilderness ‘survival’
camps. The camp coordinators claim these methods allow the juveniles
space to reconnect with appropriate behavior through nature. We have
severely troubled youth in America, who challenge authority, fracture the
law and attempt suicide. On the other hand, many youth experience less
noticeably disruptive problems such as bulimia, depression and bodily
mutilation. Consequently, parents and community leaders are writhing in
psychological trauma as they pursue solutions.
Scientific data from Chronobiology proves that humans need the great
outdoors. Chronobiology is the medical study of our body cycles such as
sleeping, waking, blood pressure and body temperature and so on. On the
radio program “Talk of the Nation,” Professor Michael Smolensky,
Co-founder of Hermann Hospital Clinical Chronobiology Center and Clinic,
sealed the fate of anti-urban sprawling activists:
Humans inherit biological clocks, the most important one being in
our brain, the hypothalamus. We’ve inherited a twenty-four hour
clock from our ancestors and the environment. Our environment
changes each and every day in a predictable way... (this) environment
that life (has) to get it’s self together .... These are the reflections of
time, energy, genomics and our physiology.
A setting sun, gravitating moon and rushing wind, fixes our bodies
rhythms. We are in sync with birds chirping, groundhogs digging, and
hummingbirds flying. When we are out of sync, we haven’t been outside
enough. Any mother will tell you her solution to a rambunctious child is to
“Go outside and play!” Where are these children going? To .35 % of an acre
lots. That is the size homes are built on in legislated affordable houses which
gradually become ghettos, because the word affordable translates to home
builders cutting comers, cramming brick and mortar as close as possible,
and chopping all timber down for easy construction access.
I am a city girl, homeowner and land developer who has gone country;
therefore, without guile, I propose that every three miles of residential
housing have ten luscious acres of uncut timbered lands – “Heritage Park,”
cared for by a retired forester, providing children a place to build tree forts,
fashion sticks to duel with soaring pine trees, and pitch smooth stones.
After school they may chase bluebirds, capture ladybugs and ponder the
meaning of the glorious, vast, and beautiful land they, the future keepers,
will inherit.
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