The Ballad of John Muir (From Dunbar to California)

Happy John Muir Day!  As proclaimed by the state of California, April 21 is the day we celebrate the birth of both John Muir and the conservation movement as we know it today.

Thanks to Muir's vision and leadership, we have been blessed not only with parklands and wild lands but also a new way of looking at our relationship with the world around us.  The words he wrote a century ago are timeless, ringing true to this day.

Learn more about Muir's words and legacy at the many sites available on the Internet, especially the John Muir Exhibit on the Sierra Cluh website -- arguably the most extensive Muir treasure online! -- and also the John Muir Trust, which is working to preserve wild lands in Muir's native Scotland.

And if you want to learn more about Muir's Scottish roots and travels to Calfornia, please go to the lyrics page of "The Ballad of John Muir," a song I wrote in 2003 that premiered last night here in San Diego.  There are a number of Muir's own words in the song -- I hope they are as inspirational to you as they are to me.

My thanks to the Robert Burns Club of San Diego for putting the song on the program ... to five amazing women -- Jackie, Karen, Katherine, Kit and my beloved Alex -- for bringing the music to life ... and to Alex Sandie, for encouraging me to bring this song out of the desk drawer and to the public.  I hope it encourages people to do as Muir urged -- to do something today for the wildness, and make the mountains glad.

Much love, Jeanne

April 21, 2005