Sense of Place

Reclaiming the Commons

Ch. 6 Historical Background (p.55) - 

During the Civil War many families, seeking refuge from plundering Yankee and Confederate soldiers, fled the valleys and settled on the ridges. After several generations, people moved off the mountains, either lured by jobs in the coal mines or forced out by land companies. The remains of those settlements serve as important landmarks for people working the seasonal round.

I found it interesting how families during the Civil War were seeking shelter and found themselves settled on the ridges. Eventually as life went on, people moved from the ridges for work or due to being forced out and it became an important landmark in history. The community that made the mountains their home moved on but the community they built stands to this day. I find it fascinating as I read what it was like to make a home out of where you settled and to discover how to survive based on resources they have or that surround their shelter.

Ch. 6 Seng Talk and Ginseng Tales: Conjuring the Commons (p.60) - 

Through narrative the commons becomes a public space, its history played out before audiences who know its spaces intimately whether they have been there together or not. Inhabiting the commons through practice and narrative confers social identity and makes a community of its occupants.

I love this line! Individuals were discovering their own sense of place that they felt emotionally connected to and considering these spaces were public, more people found themselves in the same place, which undeniably grew into a community. The commons was built upon people having their sense of place in common with others. There is a world of people that care for a specific place as a whole and share the responsibility to protect the place as if it was there own life because of the emotional connection they have built with it. 

Tropical Park

I chose to draw my favorite park from my city back in Miami. The hill sticks out the most in my drawing because Tropical Park is known for it. My friends and I to this day look back at the times we had practice over the hill for the sports we were a part of in our teen years and during the times we used it to enhance our work outs. I had my first cross country race at this park and the most challenging part was running over the gravel path up the hill. The emotional connection I have to this park has to do with feeling my best when I am exercising outdoors surrounded by nature. I feel the most alive and appreciate my well-being more than I ever have. If Tropical Park was ever threatened, I would protect it by volunteering in my community. As a volunteer, I would be interested in donating resources, volunteer labor, park enhancement projects, cleanups and beautification needs. I would make the effort to get my family and friends involved and to help keep my park standing for many more years to come by helping restore and conserve the land it is on. I also associate this park and parks in general as a way to personally connect with yourself as you are able to contemplate your whole life as you sit on a bench or go on a walk with your headphones in. The outdoors is a great reminder to be more mindful of living in the now. 

References 

Leopold, A. (2018). Reclaiming the Coomons. In S. Jackson, A. Nunes-Zaller, J. Salmond, B. Thomas (Eds.). A Sustainable Future: Equality, Ecology, and Economy (p. 65-75), Kendall Hunt Publishing.