David Hahn, Elders.

5/1/08


From The Practice of the Wild: Essays

“In your travels with an older person you were given a map you could memorize, full of lore and song, and also practical information. Off by yourself you could sing those songs to bring yourself back. And you could maybe travel to a place that you’d never been, steering only by songs you had learned.” (Snyder, 89)
After using this same quote in one of my essays and reading over it again, it really makes clear how much wisdom and valuable information elders truly have accessible for us, since their lives were so much unlike most of our own, the majority of the information they have is unfamiliar and intriguing. Snyder also describes how songs can have unique meanings to them, and how these songs can take you to various places.