Discuss: Oracle in the Desert

Thank you for the powerful story. I’m left almost speachless as I gaze at my computer…I’m saddened by the pain, anguish and trauma that Dirk was left with after his heroic service to the public for so many years. I’m also heartened by the ability of nature to help heal deep wounds.

Maybe all those that serve should be given the opportunity to “decompress” in a nature-based program after their years of service. I’m convinced that such a program could help reduce the suicide rate and heal wounds. It seems like the least we could do for the men and women who put their lives on the line for us everyday.

I could be Dirk.
Every day, I wish for the solitude that he finds in the deserts and mountains of the Southwest.
And if work keeps grinding me down, my mind will suffer different, but equivalent traumas.
Thank you for the story.

Thanks for this story by Craig Childs. It brings a welcome respite in the middle of a tedious business day.

All but one of the police officers I’ve known throughout my life have suffered privately and, on rare and difficult occasions, publicly. Many have problems dealing honestly with people. I concluded long ago that it was due to the conflict they deal with daily in their public roles and the stress of holding that conflict at bay in their own personal interactions.

The outdoors often brings relief from stress for many of us. However, one hopes that this relief eventually accommodates an effective transition back to humanity. For, as tempting as periodic isolation is, nature is what we live in every day whether in the wild open spaces or the urban environment with people.

Thank you, Craig, for this moving portrait of Dirk.  I have thought about him often in the years since I left Utah, remembering the intimate hours he and Lisa and I spent in Back of Beyond, mulling over each other’s words.  He wrote of the same stories you tell, and he showed us the canyons in his soul.  Hey Dirk, glad to hear you’re okay.  I am, too.  Aloha, Kat