Corals to water snakes to bobcats oh my!

By Hollis Moore

Big Bend State Park, TX

October 31, 2016

I walked up the Rio Grande from X to X (see above photo). The walk was an action to remember what lives downstream…A suggestion to find common ground in a split landscape by thinking about what two countries share… A walk up instead of across.

The Rio Grande at this point becomes the border between Texas and Mexico until it reaches the Gulf of Mexico. It is here in Big Bend, that Energy Transfer Partners is planning on installing the Trans-Pecos pipeline underneath the Rio Grande. The pipeline will be near enough to groundwater and surface water that if it explodes or leaks it will cause an environmental disaster.

The Rio Grande’s mouth is in the Gulf of Mexico. I wonder how the river acts as a lifeline for the Gulf, which is still recovering from the Deepwater Horizon Oil spill? Maybe it helps to flush out the contaminated salt water and sediment? If the Rio Grande does act like vein to the Gulf of Mexico, then why would we risk contaminating the Rio Grande (more than it already is)?

With these questions on my mind I walked upstream to give a voice to the marine animals and plants of the Gulf. I thought about the animals and plants I encountered over the summer while volunteering for a coral restoration project. Maybe the stories of the victims from one environmental disaster can help prevent another.

What I didn’t know during my walk was what animals I would encounter along the way. The water was too filled with milky, green sediment for me to look into the river. I noticed some dark, slithery creatures skirt away as I walked closer-probably river otters. I heard a couple of splashes and once stepped on something moving-most likely trout or catfish. I also saw something that looked like the head of a turtle, which may have been the Rio Grande slider. Or, much to my startled dismay could have been any of the dozens snakes that live in the area. Apparently all snakes can swim and rattlesnakes can even swim underwater!

Most exciting though was my encounter with a bobcat. As dusk, on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande, something caught my eye. I don’t know how long the bobcat had been watching me, but when I noticed it we looked at each other for several minutes. I thought the bobcat looked curious. Inside I felt enthralled, but also calm and honestly quite comfortable. I will remember the bobcat always.

The bobcat, the river otters, fish, turtles, swimming serpents, and birds, that I met during my upstream walk deserve a voice before the Trans-Pecos pipeline is installed. This is a wild, prosperous desert ecosystem in Bend Bend and we cannot let the oil and gas companies obliterate the wildlife as they did to the dolphins, whales, birds, fish, corals, and sea turtles in the Gulf during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

I Wonder

By Kaitlin Bryson

Marfa, TX

October 18, 2016

I wonder if we were to evolve past the current state of collectively inflated egos, would “politics” be a genre of stand-up comedy?  Would it then be possible to sincerely laugh at this silly performance that we as a people enact?  What would things look like if money didn’t rule the opinions of individuals, and individuals didn’t rule the lives of millions?  What if, instead, we asked the opinions of the Rattlesnakes, or of the microbial communities, or the Ocotillo, or the Javelina?  I bet the old Sycamores and the ancient Bristlecone Pines would have some great suggestions.  What if we actually sat quietly and listened to the desert? What if the voices of the marginalized were listened to?  And, what if a pipeline wasn’t allowed to destroy cultures or communities (above and below ground)?  What if water was seen as a living being?  Would we still shit in it?  What if the environmental agenda wasn’t a political agenda, or wasn’t part of an agenda at all?  What if it was agreed that if we destroy the land, we destroy ourselves?  What if it was obvious to everyone that we (humans) are not in control, and that we (humans) are just another organ in a body?  

Trans-Pecos Pipeline (Under-Construction)

By Molly Zimmer

Highway 67, Near Marfa, TX

October 21, 2016

During our Time in Marfa, Texas we met with a wonderful artist and activist, Alyce Santoro, who generously opened her home and showed us around for two days to discuss how the Trans-Pecos Pipeline has and will continue to affect her community in Alpine, TX.

Check out her work at http://www.alycesantoro.com.

Get involved @defendbigbend

The same company that that is building this pipeline, is also being fought by the protestors up at Standing Rock near Cannon Ball, North Dakota.

As part of the two days, we attended a Town Hall Meeting in the town of Presidio, TX to share the information about the Pipeline that would affect their community, and we drove past several locations where you could see Energy Transfer Partners already working fast to bury the pipe underground, and huge tracks that went for miles where they planned to lay pipe down.

Harnessing the Air in Windy Marfa

By Nancy Dewhurst

Marfa, Texas

October 20, 2016

We are in Marfa, learning about the Trans-Pecos pipeline. I am thinking about man’s bazaar need to claim ownership, particularly over natural resources.

A sketch - Harnessing the Air in Windy Marfa: https://youtu.be/VhbtoP4PhGY

Pipes

By Hamshya Rajkumar

Presidio, Texas

October 21, 2016

We have forgotten to feel with our entire body and being.

Unlike the snake, who cannot forget.

What their senses tell them is critical to their survival.

Those pipes are gonna affect us, wherever we are.

http://www.defendbigbend.org/

Pipeline Picnic

By Hollis Moore

Marfa/ Trans-Pecos Pipeline, TX

October 31, 2016

In this photo I am caught in action.  (I’m in the gray shirt sitting at the end of the table with a very focused gaze). This was the moment I decided to break my vegetarian diet to eat the sandwich presented to our group by Robert Luhan, an activist and artist, during a Pipeline picnic dialogue. The sandwich came from Don Jose Panaderia in Presidio, TX and is a fantastic meat and cheese filled braid of delicious goodness.

Sharing food is the keystone to opening a comfortable space for conversation. Our Land Arts group shared lunch with Lori, Nicole, Alice, and Roberto, all activists involved with Defend Big Bend. Over the course of devouring the 36” sandwich we learned about the development of the Trans-Pecos pipeline and its impact on the Trans-Pecos area socially, politically, and environmentally. These leaders of the grassroots, volunteer movement Defend Big Bend are incredibly passionate and intelligent trailblazers, committed to rebuilding fractured communities and preserving the land for generations to come.

Our group sharing a Don Jose Panaderia sandwich with Lori, Nicole, Alice, and Roberto was a way to bridge our two communities. A collective meal is rooted in reality, it is an embodied experience, and an attention to the present moment. The simple act of taking time to sit, eat, and chat together created an experience I will always remember and a responsibility to pass along and act on what I learned.

If you are interested in learning more about Defend Big Bend sign up for the blog here: http://www.defendbigbend.org/