The people of the Ozarks are shaped by the land as much as they are shapers of the land. Try it for yourself. Stand in an Ozark valley with a clear, rocky, stream running beside you and look down-valley. Do you sense the hills on either side? Like muscular shoulders lifting the sky. Does the strong close presence of those hills make you feel the strength in your legs and back? Now use this strength to climb the steep hills to the ridge overlooking the valley. The climb will strip you, carve you. Find a prominence to look out from. There are many to be found. See, the vista laying out before you. Feel the open presence of the air all around you filling your lungs and lifting you up as you gaze upon the airy grandeur of the near and distant hills and valleys. Do you feel your back straighten, your shoulders rise and your chest swell? Don't you see yourself being fitted by this land for this land? Day by day experience this and the land will carve you strong and bright and make you an Ozarker.
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