May Meeting at Yankauer Preserve!

This month's Potomac Valley Nature Writing Group meeting will take place Sunday, May 31, 3:00 PM in the pavilion at Yankauer Nature Preserve. Please bring a lawn chair and water. During the summer months we will plan to meet at different locations outdoors, and return to our Shepherd University classroom in the fall.
The book for May is Idle Weeds: Life of a Sandstone Ridge by David Rains Wallace. Members are encouraged to share one or two passages in the book they found especially notable and why. We also like to hear readings of members' own writings, especially when inspired by the current book of the month.
After our discussion, those who wish can explore the trails and possibly do some nature journaling. New members are welcome! Don't worry if you haven't read the book. For directions to the Yankauer Preserve, go to http://www.potomacaudubon.org/yankauer.html
Hope to see you!

DAVID RAINS WALLACE is AUTHOR FOR MAY

David Rains Wallace needs a publicist! He has written many natural history books and is highly regarded as a naturalist and author, but finding information about him on the web is very difficult. See the few links at left I was able to locate. Please post if you have information to share. We are reading Idle Weeds: The Life of an Ohio Sandstone Ridge for May.

REPORT ON APRIL MEETING

This afternoon we had a scintillating discussion of Terry Tempest Williams' REFUGE. The book generated ideas and questions on a wide range of topics. The book received mixed reviews but all agreed it was a worthwhile read. We had two new members attending, welcome!

Next meeting was set for May 31 at 3:00 PM with a possible change of location. Confirmation on location to come. In general, we will be scheduling meetings for the last Sunday of the month.

We were also very productive in that we have set books of the month through October! Participating members each suggested one title then they were drawn in random order.
MAY: Wallace, David Rains: Idle Weeds – The life of an Ohio Sandstone Ridge
JUNE Borland, Hal; Beyond Your Doorstep
JULY Costanz, George: Hollows, Peepers & Highlanders: An Appalachian Mountain Ecology
AUGUST Kline, David: Scratching the Woodcock--Nature on an Amish Farm
SEPTEMBER Kimmerer, Robin Wall: Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, 2003
OCTOBER Winn, Marie: Red-Tails in Love: A Wildlife Drama in Central Park, 1998

Click each title above to be linked to a website with more information!

I'm realizing that while the selection of a specific book is important, it is not as important as the responses we each have as we read, and then the special chemistry that occurs when we all get together and share our insights.

Happy reading (and writing! ;-)

Terry Tempest Williams' REFUGE

In REFUGE: An Unnatural History of Family and Place, Terry Tempest Williams witnesses the diminishment of the migratory bird refuge at Great Salt Lake, walks with a loved one through illness and grief, and explores the meaning of her family history. A dominant theme of the book is accepting loss and embracing change as part of nature.

The author is celebrated for her unique style and ability to evoke a deep emotional response in the reader. In 2006, Ms. Williams received the Robert Marshall Award from The Wilderness Society, their highest honor given to an American citizen. She also received the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Western American Literature Association and the Wallace Stegner Award given by The Center for the American West. She is the recipient of a Lannan Literary Fellowship and a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in creative nonfiction. Terry Tempest Williams is currently the Annie Clark Tanner Scholar in Environmental Humanities at the University of Utah.

Report on March Meeting

The March 29 meeting had a good turnout of six people with three new members attending. We enjoyed a lively discussion about Rachel Carson as an environmentalist and as an author. Members shared some readings of favorite passages. Members had read from different works, including Always Rachel (a collection of letters to and from Dorothy Freeman), Under the Sea-Wind, The Edge of the Sea, A Sense of Wonder, The Lost Woods (an anthology of Carson writings), and The Sea Around Us. We reviewed an ever-growing list of candidates for future reads, but settled on Refuge by Terry Tempest Williams for April's book. One member is investigating the purchase of a nature writers' anthology to assist us in the book selection process. Many excellent suggestions have been put forth! We are still determining what process to use for selecting books. As the season warms, we hope to schedule some meetings outdoors. The next meeting is set for Sunday April 26, 3:00 PM, Snyder Hall, Shepherd University.

COMMENT: ALWAYS RACHEL

If you are reading Always, Rachel, add your comments here.

Film on Carson in the works to show at NCTC!

I have been speaking with PVAS and NCTC about scheduling a free showing of the film. More info coming soon. Trillium
http://www.asenseofwonderfilm.com/