Last weekend my daughter and I decided to take a 5-plus-mile hike along the Appalachian Trail from Etna to Hanover traveling through a stretch that includes a boardwalk overlooking a wetland, Velvet Rocks in the uplands to the east of Trescott Road, and some surprisingly steep sections that required our full concentration as we descended into Hanover. The walk in the woods gave us an opportunity to avoid the sweltering heat and also gave us the opportunity to compare notes with a number of through-hikers, many of whom were eager to share their experiences heading northward from Georgia. To the through-hikers, the extreme heat and drought we are now experiencing was nothing new. They’d encountered these conditions since they entered Virginia, enduring weeks of relentless heat and humidity which, when combined with dried up streams and watering holes, made the trek from Georgia to Maine especially challenging.
Several of the hikers expressed their gratitude for the “trail angels” who left them food and water at various sites along the trail. For those unfamiliar with the term “trail angels,” they are local hiking aficionados who periodically drop off food items and jugs of water they freely offer to through-hikers to take as they hike along the trail. On the trek from Etna to Hanover we came across three coolers that offered items ranging from boxes of cereal and cookies, to granola bars, to jugs of water … coolers stocked by anonymous local residents who offered assistance to strangers from across the country striving to make the 2,300 journey from Georgia to Mount Katahdin.
On the day before our hike I read several articles on the coming water shortages in the west and the conflicts in Monterrey, Mexico, where thousands are without water and lawlessness is rampant. In reflecting on the consequences of these shortages, it struck me that given the emerging water shortages in our nation, our political leaders need to appeal to the part of each of us that would gladly provide a total stranger with food and water: the “trail angel” that exists within everyone. Those who serve as trail angels are not motivated by money or personal gain. They are motivated by the empathy they feel for the through-hikers, who they know, often from their own personal experience as backpackers, are weary, thirsty and hungry.
The trail angel ethos is not limited to supporting through-hikers on the Appalachian Trail. It is evident in our citizens’ response to victims of natural disasters, our donations to foodbanks and response to “round-up” campaigns at stores, and to GoFundMe appeals from friends and acquaintances who are unexpectedly facing medical bills due to an accident or illness. Many who are on a spiritual path make donations to the churches they attend, and countless individuals volunteer time, energy and money to nonprofit organizations. Like the foodstuffs and water left at trailheads, these donations are freely given to strangers in need with no strings attached.
When I witness this kind of generosity on a large scale, I find myself mystified at how many of these same kind-hearted individuals could hold political views that are mean-spirited and antithetical to the “trail angel” ethos. How could anyone with such an ethos support politicians who advocate the prosecution of those “trail angels” in the Southwest who leave caches of water for those fleeing narco-terrorism and poverty in Central America? How could anyone with a trail angel ethos support politicians who oppose humanitarian aid to the tens of thousands of Syrian and Afghan refugees stranded on islands in the Mediterranean awaiting an opportunity to begin their lives anew? How could anyone with a trail angel ethos support politicians who oppose legislation that provides food, clothing, and shelter to homeless families in our country? How could anyone with a trail angel ethos support politicians who advocate vigilantism, who support the need for every citizen to own military-grade weapons, or who oppose the need for every American to have reasonably priced medical care?
Examples of this kind of cognitive dissonance — where one’s personal actions and ethos conflict with one’s political beliefs — abound in our country, and whether our nation continues as a democracy or devolves into an autocracy depends in large measure on how citizens reconcile this discrepancy. If citizens are unaware of or ignore this misalignment it could result in their unquestioning support for politicians who wish to impose a uniform system of thought on everyone, one that reinforces the status quo premise that deregulated economic growth and consumerism are essential for our well-being.
On the other hand, if citizens become aware of the misalignment and decide that our politics should reflect our personal values, it increases the possibility that the open-minded and big-hearted trail angel ethos will prevail and our empathy for each other will reverse the trend toward self-centeredness that is implicit in our current political and economic climate.
Many are skeptical about the possibility of the kind of shift in thinking that is necessary to change the overarching ethos in our country. But there is evidence that such a shift is already underway: the rethinking of our personal values that underlies the “Great Resignation”; the “woke” movement; and the desire of many to restore the humanitarian values of the civil rights and anti-poverty movements. Which way will we turn in the months ahead? I am hoping the trail angels prevail.
Wayne Gersen lives in Etna.