Mikaela Martinez Dettinger- Huckleberries and Rosemary

 Henry David Thoreau wrote a very thoughtful critique on the privatization of land in his essay Huckleberries. In his essay, he reminisced on his ability as a child to go into wild huckleberry fields and pick them as often as he would like. In his adult years he saw those same huckleberry field bought up and restricted from public galavanting for the purpose of making a profit from the berries. He called this a "dog-in-the-manger" problem meaning that people were hoarding huckleberries, but they also had no intent to use them themselves. Now, 159 years after Thoreau passed away, privatization is worse and it comes with a dual problem. 

    The first problem is what Thoreau saw in his days, privatization for profit. This is obviously a huge problem for many reasons. However, I want to focus on the second problem, conservation privatization. By this term that I'm sure is huge modality issue, I mean the issue that natural spaces now must be owned by an entity in order to be conserved. In being owned by an entity there are restrictions on what you can and cannot do within them. Specifically I faced this problem on the Noland Trail. Since discovering in class the Rosemary plant by Lion's gate, I go an pick a sprig or two of Rosemary whenever I pass through that area (which is a rare occasion as I gravitate towards the other end of the Noland). For the first time, I was approached by a kind park ranger and told that I couldn't pick any Rosemary because it harms the plants. I left with the sprig I had and continued on my way thanking her for informing me of the rules. But to be honest, I was miffed. I understood why it is enforced. Not everyone can be trusted to only take a little and there's always the problem of people taking advantage of nature and ruining it, but wouldn't it be better if people knew how to harvest the plants from the Noland? Maybe it would lead to greater community involvement and a better understanding of the importance of nature. Maybe it would even lead people to have a greater respect for the Trail if they experiences getting one of their ingredients from the dirt and how beneficial natural places are. I thought back to Thoreau and sympathized. I, too, would write an essay on the privatization of Rosemary. I just wanted to make some Rosemary pesto, but in the name of conserving a natural area I hold dear to my heart, I also have to accept an inherent separation from it because it is owned by others.