“THE WATCHERS”
Rex Burress
I hadn't intended to watch much of the TV History channel's program on “Ancient Aliens,” as some of that script verges on dubious UFO lore, but as things come to things, I was drawn in by the theme of “Watchers.”
The contention was that advanced aliens called “Watchers” arrived on Earth and helped struggling mankind build things like the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge, Mayan Temples, Easter Island statues, and all those incredible accomplishments made in prehistorical times—and those theorists on the History channel theorized that the Watchers are still among us doing the impossible!
Of course, this struck me as ironic since I have been enticing Watchers, as in River and Nature Watchers, to look at nature's loveliness with understanding for years! I would be surprised if John Muir, who coined that phrase, was an interstellar alien, although he made some remarkable achievements, and exhibited an extraordinary strength in climbing mountains and glaciers, and revealed an astute intellect in interpreting the wonders of nature.
Are there watchers among us? I know Carolyn Short, Dawn Garcia, Joanna Arroyo, Brent McGhie, Michael Hubbartt, Ilene Hill Bernhardt, Jayne Locus, and a host of other nature followers right here in Butte are riverwatchers as well as observers! Of course, Yogi created that 'you can observe a lot by just watching!' I see no indication that these nature enthusiasts are up to any alien tricks!
Interestingly, the program spent some time on the Holy Bible and comparisons between God in Genesis and Ancient Aliens! Was Jesus an ancient alien? Heaven is projected to be somewhere 'out there' evidently in some other dimension as interpreted by some religious outlooks according to the scriptures. Is that city with streets paved with gold out in space somewhere or closer to home base? I should consult a theologian before I get into a theological tangle! Like Vincent Van Gogh said, “As for me, I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream.”
As for me, I know the 'watcher' can go down by the river, anywhere, and see some form of nature to watch. I, too, know nothing with any certainty, because there are always variations and exceptions to the rule—and there are also finicky specialists that change scientific names of species! For example, consider the California fuchsia, a native plant clinging to the river riparian. For years its Latin was Zauschneria latifolia, then it was changed to Epilobium canum, which, as Biologist Wes Dempsey of Chico said, “It took us oldtimers years to learn Zauschneria, then they change the name!”
But pure watching is above mere classification and scientific rules; watching is in the realm of immediate speculation and framed by a sense of wonder. Watching is the direct pathway to understanding.
You can also feel, smell, and hear nature if you've got ears for it. Some able bird watchers, like Dawn Garcia of Altacal Audubon, excels at identifying birds by their song.
“What I say unto you, I say unto all, 'Watch.'” --Jesus, Mark 13:37
Be a watcher...if you're not already one...find a cozy spot by the river where 'the breezes are soft and skies are fair and you can steal an hour from study and care, and watch the clear depths where its eddies play and dimples deepen and whirl away.' Set up a telescope; have your journal ready, and note the chirp of birds that feed on the river cherry and seedy reed. You are a watcher!
“Earth's crammed full of heaven, and every common bush is afire with God. But only those who see take off their shoes; the rest walk around picking blackberries.” --Elizabeth Browning