‘For us of the minority, the opportunity to see geese is more important than television, and the chance to find a pasque-flower is a right as inalienable as free speech.’ Aldo Leopold, Sand County Almanac

When I was a student at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point I took a nature literature class and read A Sand County Almanac. The book was written in 1949 by University of Wisconsin professor Aldo Leopold and became a pivot piece of literature in the environmental movement and helped pave the way so that I would develop a life-long interest in protecting our planet.

I could relate to his quote about ‘the minority’ as I valued my experiences in the natural world more than the man-made world. I had seen plenty of geese and preferred watching them to television but I had never seen a pasque flower in the wild. It took 12 years after I read the book before I finally found a pasque flower and could fully appreciate what Leopold meant.

The pasque flower grows primarily in prairies. Natural prairies were common in southern Wisconsin at the time of European settlement but have now been replaced largely by dairy farms. I had heard that some remnants of that vast prairie had been preserved and maintained in a park about 40 minutes northwest of Madison. So on one fine spring day in 1989, I jumped on my motorcycle and drove out to Walking Iron County Park in search of the elusive pasque flower.

Anyone who has survived a long and cruel Wisconsin winter would understand Leopold a bit better. The pasque flower is one of the first plants to flower in spring and takes on the French name for Easter. By April, people of the northern climes are desperately looking for any sign that the cold, dreary winter will be coming to an end.

As I drove out to Walking Iron, I wasn’t convinced that winter was about to end as the browns of April still hadn’t been replaced by the fresh greens of May. I wasn’t disappointed though and the pasque flowers were in full bloom. Imagine my delight when I saw specks of colour on that otherwise dreary looking prairie. Winter was over, spring was on its way!

I spent the morning on my tummy getting up close and personal with these harbingers of spring. Leopold’s words rang true as I appreciated the efforts of those who preserved the prairie and gave me a chance to express my rights to enjoy nature in its full glory.