The reading this week was very interesting in the way that it talked about human’s connection with nature. There were multiple times throughout the first chapters where the story described a mutually beneficial relationship between the environment and people. The first instance I noticed of it was in “The Great Old Hunter” where the author mentions that: “Man developed without dissociating or abstracting himself from the world. In short, he knew how to love it, to give and to take in many ways, as he needed” (Lebey, p.12). Humans, men specifically, at this time were able to peacefully coexist with the world. They were not taking excessively from the land but living in harmony with it. This quote explains that this was a process because men “developed” into learning their position and did not just automatically know how to respect the environment. While humans are benefiting from the resources that the environment provides, the environment is benefiting from the love and care of humans. I found this interesting because there is not often any mention of love or giving when discussing the environment. Many modern stories do not acknowledge the respect that the environment is owed and there is hardly any reference to giving back to it in any sort of way. Another moment that stood out to me that revealed a lot about the relationship with the environment was in the description of the wands that Melusine gave to her husband. The wands were made from the elements and contained stones that would help whoever had them with living and battles. These wands were a literal manifestation of what the foundations of the world can help men with. Melusine explains that the core of the stones “is also influenced by what we imagine, and the stones do the rest” (Lebey, p. 28). My understanding of this is that the stones worked depending on the intention of the person using them, so to want to do something that is out of line with nature, in general, would end with not the best results. While the Earth is giving these gifts to someone, they are not meant to be used in a way that would be detrimental to the environment. The environment provides for people but in return requires respect, care, and honesty.