May you carry this place with you all your days,

the light and the shade of it, the rough and the gay

Deep roots to make a tree tall

the heart free that can never spend enough

And may you find in the wild forest somewhere

A nest of quail that never heard of cage

or fence or boundary,

feathering on you there

The Invisible Wings of this

heritage.

Howard Hanson, 11/6/1974

This poem was a gift from a childhood friend and mentor. I grew up on the edge of wilderness and from this wildness I came to know my strong self. The heritage is this connection with life.