If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution. Emma Goldman
If the Conservancy is not joyful, what's the point? We work hard at advocacy, trying to carry out our purpose: "To preserve and protect areas of particular scenic, geologic, biologic, historic, wilderness and/or recreational importance in West Virginia." Some of our members plod their way through permit files and public notices. We write letters. We contact public officials.
We have spent a lot of time and energy in trying to preserve Blackwater Canyon. Some of our members even claim to have read every page of the Environmental Impact Statement for Corridor H. It's all useful work. It's all work that has to be done. Sometimes it is boring. Some of it is drudgery. But is has to be done. While it has its moments, such work is not fun.
While we are willing to do such work because it needs to be done, in the long run there has to be joy in what we do. There is certainly no money in the work. It's not a stepping stone to the White House or the Governor's Mansion. If there's no emotional satisfaction in the work, why bother?
I got my dose for the week (maybe for the whole month) in a picture and note that one of our members sent me. She liked something I wrote for the Voice so she made me a picture. On the back was a touching message. It might not put me any closer to the White House or making my first million but I will cherish it forever.
It's the emotional satisfaction that makes it possible to keep the Blackwater Canyon campaign going. I get to open the mail, mail that includes a goodly number of donations to the campaign. Along with the donations come little notes. People write about how pleased they are with what we are doing. People write a sentence or two about how glad they are that the Conservancy is working on this issue. By their notes they let me know that somebody cares about what we are doing. They give us the strength to carry on. I send all donors a thank you note. They need to know that somebody appreciates what they have done. They get the emotional satisfaction of helping preserve the Blackwater Canyon plus the assurance that somebody recognizes the importance of their contribution. Those of us who work a lot on the Blackwater Canyon campaign communicate a lot by e-mail. When someone does something to advance the campaign, Linda Cooper always sends an e-mail thanking and complimenting the person. Someone stopped me on the street in Charleston to tell me that a column I did was "visionary". It's experiences like that which make people who are working on the campaign want to work harder. It makes people who write want to write more. They don't make us any money; they just makes us richer in spirit.
And then there was the Spring Review. We had it at Blackwater Canyon and it was wonderful. There were lots of people, a canoe trip, bird walks, a great program. We had visits from oversized versions of some of the endangered species who live in the Canyon. There were chances to gaze at some of the finest views in West Virginia or, for that matter, the United States. We got to remind ourselves that Blackwater Canyon is not just an "issue"; it's not just a campaign. It's a real place, a beautiful place. It's a place of joy. That's what makes what we do worth doing. It's knowing that we are doing something important. It's knowing that we are doing it with other people who share our passion. It's telling each other that they are important and that what they do is appreciated. It's getting to do some of it in beautiful places. It's joyful.
Emma Goldman was right. To paraphrase her, if I can't have joy, I don't want to be part of your preservation. The Conservancy fills the bill. For all the hard work that is often involved, the Conservancy is joyous.