“I rest in the grace of the world and am free.” This quote, found in Wendell Berry's poem, "The Peace of Wild Things," absolutely struck me as my eyes ran along the text. I read many, many poems throughout high school and my early college years, but none of which affected me like this poem. As I read it, I fell in love with the musicality of the short, simple poem. I loved the immediacy of it; he was straight to the point, without beating around the bush. As I read this work of art, my mind was transported to my favorite place outdoors. My imagination was filled with the swaying of the tall grass, the stillness of the trees, and the feeling that time has stopped and I am the only one who notices. For example, the idea was born, or the memory of how much I love nature and life in the open air and the great sense of peace it transmits to me. In an instant, he showed me how far he had strayed from that mindset. I think this poem has the ability to draw viewers' attention to how far we have all distanced ourselves from nature. I think about last week, when I visited Sioux Falls for the first time, I was really shocked as I looked around and saw a large number of people so focused on their various versions of technology that they didn't see the beauty of God passing by. I think this piece presents a new and inspiring idea that simpler times are truly over. I believe it has become rare for people in today's age to seek the sense of peace in nature that the author describes in this poem. It's truly amazing to me how we can proceed through the banality of life, and then suddenly an old thought is drugged from the dark recesses of our minds and becomes new. I can't say how many times I've read those two books, but every time I read them I'm reminded of how different life was during the gold rush. Before reading those books, I had romantic ideas about the gold rush; I thought it was just a bunch of guys digging around in some river for gold. I had never considered that they did this rigorous activity year-round in such horrible conditions. I think when we go back and read familiar works, it reminds us of where we come from, what our opinions are based on. I always think we should revisit books from our past; they are a big part of what shaped it