NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/1040966
44 NEBRASKAland • NOVEMBER 2018 I f you have followed my previous Page 49 efforts in NEBRASKAland, you may know I am a sucker for a pretty rock. I've been stuck in the Paleolithic era since I was a little kid. The principal reason we have to replace washing machines and dryers around here is because of what Linda calls "Rog's R.I.P. (Rocks-in- Pockets) Syndrome." My idea of heaven is the rock pile at a Nebraska gravel pit. So I was surprised last summer when I saw requests from our Game and Parks folks that people stop putting painted rocks, often with what I guess were meant to pass as inspirational messages, in various recreation areas around the state. Why would anyone paint a rock? Frankly, I've never encountered a rock that wasn't already inspirational pretty much as it lay there in the water, or sun, or … well, a Nebraska gravel pit rock pile. I've certainly never seen one that needed cosmetic painting to be interesting. Consider for a moment the chemical constituents of most rocks – calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, zinc, sodium ... minerals. Know what else is made of things like that? Us! We are, after all, of the same origins, whether you are of a biblical bent (Adam = earth אֲדָמָה), scientific (see above), or lyric ("…we are stardust, we are golden…"). Diamonds, emeralds, shiny rocks, round rocks, big rocks, little rocks … All the same stuff more or less. For 65 years of my long life, however, I have associated with Indians and so I've had a chance to see life from vantage points not always common in the mainstream culture. A rose may be a rose may be a rose, but a rock is not always a rock. Try this one on for size: rocks are not just like us in being made of the same gathering of minerals in different combinations, but in the minds of some of my best friends, they are also like us in that they are living entities. I know … not an easy idea to accept, especially for those – way too many in my opinion – who spend their hours, days, and lives in a culture that doesn't even consider trees to be living beings. Not to mention sentient! When I am with Pawnee, Lakota, or Omaha friends and we gather plant materials, we often talk with the plants to explain why we are injuring it, that we appreciate the sacrifice, will take no more of it than we need, that what we are doing is for a good purpose, and of course that we are grateful. This point of view says not so much about the things around us like trees and rocks, but about us and how we see ourselves in relationship to and with those "things." Now, if you can imagine being a tree hugger like me, take another step and try to get your head around showing that kind of respect to a rock. As a fellow being, I guess it depends on how integral one considers him or herself to be with what is around us, whether that be animal, plant or mineral. It is easy to understand that we put words and symbols we want to last well beyond our "all too mortal flesh" – tombstones, runes, hieroglyphs, for example, or statues, or even entire carved mountains, but what are we to make of things carved into stone that we not only no longer understand but ... that might not have been intended for us to read anyway? I have recently encountered some remarkable examples of these expressions, of other-directed messages, or … ? Jan Simek of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Anthropology Department has reported some remarkable observations and conclusions in his work in rock "art," especially in caves in eastern states. (And thanks to old friend Ben Swadley for passing this information along to me!) Prof. Simek has found "messages" painted on or carved onto deep cave walls and ceilings that are oriented in such a way that they can't possibly be seen or "read" by human observers. That is, they were not installed with the intention of someone in the cave to see them. Perhaps with a perspective that could only be grasped by "someone" further way from the wall or overhang than is possible for anyone to achieve. Or in some really stunning examples, "messages" that are mirror images intended not for someone facing the images but, well…er… behind them? Simek's conclusion: The messages aren't meant to be read by someone in the cave or outside the rock. They are meant for the spirits inside the rock! How's that for a kick in the fanny? So the next time you pitch a rock into the pond or decide to improve on it by painting a bit of doggerel on it, please think again and consider the sensitivities of what's inside that rock! ■ Roger Welsch is an author, humorist, folklorist and a former essayist for CBS News Sunday Morning. He is the author of more than 40 books and has been contributing to NEBRASKAland Magazine since 1977. By Roger Welsch Rock Steady Respect for rocks. Jan Simek, in an unnamed cave, examines prehistoric cave art.