When Thomas Cole stood atop the mountains he so dutifully painted, did he see the destruction that had been wrought upon land? No. It was invisible to him. Before him he only saw a land unfulfilled, lacking purpose. He looked out into the distance and wished only to minecraft. To wander into the unclaimed lands he said were unclaimed, and to make them useful. I hope he hath learned where that path led. I hope he knows what a strip mall is. I hope he knows what a gas station is. I hope he knows what a highway is. I hope he knows what a car park is. I hope it eats him up inside. I hope his soul pines for the days when the chestnut and the elm filled the northeast woodland. I hope Lady Artemis shows him the turtle island untouched by colonial expansion, the turtle island respected by its inhabitants. I hope he is in pain at the world he helped create.

C: Mom says death is as natural as birth. And it's all part of the life cycle.| C: She says we don't really understand it, but there are many things we don't understand and we just have to do the best with the knowledge we have.| C: I guess that makes sense.| C: ...But don't you go anywhere. H: Don't worry.

C: Hey! What happened to the trees here? Who cleared out the woods?| C: There used to be lots of animals in these woods! Now it's a mud pit!| H: The sign says, "Future Site of Shady Acres Condominiums".| C: ANIMALS CAN'T AFFORD CONDOS! H: "Shady Acres"? The only shade I see is from that bulldozer.

C: Where are all the animals supposed to live now that they cut down these woods to put in houses??| By golly, how would PEOPLE like it if animals bulldozed a suburb and put in new TREES?!?| C: H: | H (in bulldozer): No good. They didn't leave the keys.

C: It took hundreds of years for these woods to grow, and they leveled it in a week. It's gone.| After they build houses here, they'll have to widen the roads and put up gas stations, and pretty soon the whole area will just be a big strip.| C: Eventually there won't be a nice spot left anywhere.| C: I wonder if you can refuse to inherit the world? H: I think if you're born, it's too late.