From the vast grandeur of the Great Plains to the dark solitude of the northern woods, from the fierce intensity of a sudden summer storm to the quiet redemption of a perfect blanket of snow, Kent Nerburn pays homage to the land that has shaped the lives and cultures of northern people.

Nerburn's essays range broadly from deeply personal narratives of the author's experiences among the Ojibwe, to dark meditations on the uncompromising winters of northern Minnesota, to mystical celebrations of water and light.

Throughout, Nerburn writes with an incandescent radiance and intellectual passion that are at once elemental, provocative, and startling. Deeply grounded in the struggle for authentic spiritual awakening - a path based on awareness rather than explanation - Nerburn's words illuminate the intricate subtleties of nature with intimacy and power.