“In June 2026 my girlfriend and I went out west, a little break from our real lives, over the next week and a half we spent many of hours exploring from Vegas to Phoenix, AZ. Filled our days with visits to National Parks, including Zion, Bryce and the Grand Canyon. While I am grateful for this trip, I could not help but notice the over-commercialization of these places. What I imagined as a trip that could conduce self-reflection in solitude was merely a false assumption. I was left feeling over-accommodated and overwhelmed.

I realize that the National Parks program was designed to preserve these places, through, yes, capitalism. However, I believe the overcrowding of these parks disturbs the initial intent. Saw far too many people with selfie sticks and drones. I asked myself, am I even better? Perhaps my negative outlook is one filled with ego.

I made this piece as a sort of commentary. I thought the words of Alan Watts perfectly fit how I felt about this trip. I reflect fondly on this time but wonder if the future will allow such solitude and reflection as these places once allowed. I find it doubtful”