Leave no trace is the theme of the conservationist responsibility of every person who uses the facilities and the pristine fields and forests that are part of the natural environment observed there.
Those of us who by the nature of our research as necessitated by accurate, honest and detailed history of the post-settlement uses of the land as well as the activities of our own direct ancestors understand. We have learned that “leave no trace” must have been the Osage motto as well. Any footprints were gently applied. They indeed left little to no traces of their passage here. It was a performance worthy of imitation and that appears now as the perfect illustration of the meaning of “Leave no trace.” It defines the challenge they understood. As a result, they left us with its effects. The presented a challenge for our eyes as we need a neat, clear, orderly and healthy environment for our own benefit. They left it in good condition. What happens now that we have inherited it?
So far as I am concerned, speaking as a lifelong woodsman and naturalist, I strongly advise that every one of us now should adopt that same sound motto as
our way of life and apply it to our behavior in a way that can make possible a pristine environment for our children and our children’s children and others to follow.
Much like the Osage example, no one of any race could hope to leave a better gift.
We should confront the future by engaging in a caring and responsible passage and constructing a foundation for a better tomorrow by adopting a caring, wholesome lifestyle.
It would be good to see every one in today’s society take notice of the lesson involved here and become a conservationist with serious intent. Like our predecessors, we took should learn to “leave no trace” and go into the history of our time as a people who cared and who acted with dignity and sensitivity to the needs of the natural environment.
