Requiem to the Red Rock

To be whole. To be complete. Wildness reminds us what it means to be human, what we are connected to rather than what we are separate from.
–Terry Tempest Williams

At least once a year, my family treks down to Southern Utah. We reason that we’re going down in order to hike, take pictures, go to one of our favorite bookstores, and lay like lizards on the warm rocks. These are all valid reasons for making the four hour journey south, but our real reason lies beyond words, beyond justification.

Southern Utah is a special place that transcends simple description. Its very existence defies reason; its unique landscape and visual proof of the passing and power of time serve as a reminder of just how small I am. Being among that which has survived thousands of years grounds me; witnessing the results of what the constant force of water and wind can do humbles me; appreciating the life that finds a way to grow out of dry, hard rock inspires me.

This land, this place, deserves our respect and protection. Although I will not assume I know the best way to preserve this land while respecting the rights of those who live there, I do trust those who have chosen to advocate for this land.

The Southen Utah Wilderness Alliance is such an organization. Since 1983, SUWA has been “the only independent organization working full-time to defend America’s redrock wilderness from oil and gas development, unnecessary road construction, rampant off-road vehicle use, and other threats to Utah’s wilderness-quality lands.” The mission of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance is “the preservation of the outstanding wilderness at the heart of the Colorado Plateau, and the management of these lands in their natural state for the benefit of all Americans.”

I am offering up this shawl in support of Southern Utah’s wild red rock land that needs our protection. This shawl, like the land it represents, is more than the sum of its parts. In many ways, this is the simplest of the six shawls I have auctioned, although its simplicity lends to its undeniable beauty. It is knit out of dk-weight Bluefaced Leicester wool that has been organically dyed gradiently, so each color beautifully transitions into the next. This shawl is a classic long triangle with simple eyelets and an i-cord border. It is earthy, unique, and lovely.

Requiem 
by David Lee

More than a high-desert sun dog shimmering
above thin lines of the Canyonland’s open throat
or the sift of October-flushed aspen
on a gnarled Pine Valley, Utah, morning.
More than the pink fleece of a lost primrose
bathed in twilight by a graveled roadside
or the shadow of a cornstalk petroglyph
leaning into its basalt winter.
Beyond words sliding from hollows of memory
that hold image and time in stone cups
is the yearning, the bending to morning,
the huddled ache that can never be soothed
by moonlight or spring rains or crimson oak,
only by tomorrow’s sunrise.

Please feel free to share this post with anyone and everyone, because the higher the bidding goes, the more impact this one beautiful shawl can have.

• The opening bid starts at $50 and begins NOW.
• Please bid in whole dollar amounts.
• All bids need to be within the comment thread of this blog post in order for everyone to keep track of the highest bid.
• I will close the auction at 5:00 PM MDT on Saturday, April 15.
• When the auction is over, I will send the winner an email; the winner must donate directly to Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance within 48 hours and then forward the confirmation email to me as proof; I’ll coordinate getting the shawl to you by April 24th.
• If the winner lives away, I will cover the cost of shipping the shawl via Priority Mail.
• Once again, 100% of the proceeds of the winning bid will go towards the cause, this time to SUWA.

Much love to all of you…and happy bidding!