By sarah goldblatt
By Andrew Kensley, Blair Oliver, Laura Pritchett, Tracy Ross and Shawna Jackson Van
By rachel walker

By Cara McDonald, Allison LeCain and Caramie Petrowsky
By lisa blake
by andra Coberly
by andra Coberly
By cara mcdonald
By Carrie Visantainer
By dana r. butler
By Lisa Blake
by corey radman

Then I’d brought my son Alek home from the hospital; naked, skinny, insatiable and impossibly small. One night I sat crying on the porch, hiding from a newborn who slept only eight hours a day and cried the rest. A mother barn swallow sat on the telephone wire nearby, chirping so hard her body shook, anxious to get back to the nest on my porch. I remember thinking, she’s crying to get back to her babies, and here I am, sitting out here to get away from mine.
Alek carried the little sparrows home tucked in his shirt. He handed them over, looking up at me with total faith that I could do the impossible. I stared down at these miniature Thanksgiving turkeys with their blueberry eyeballs and oversized beaks and thought, please. Die quickly. Don’t linger. I don’t want to pour my heart into saving you and fail.
There is nothing quite so helpless as a baby bird. The secret to saving them is simple yet brutal: keep them warm and feed them every 15 minutes. They sat in a Tupperware bowl filled with paper towels next to my computer as I worked, waiting for the next mouthfuls of soaked dry cat food. When I had to leave, I took birds, bowl and a side of Friskies. To the grocery store. The pool. The playdate pick-up. “I’m sorry,” one dad said, sticking his head in the window, “but it sounds like you might have a bird in the car.”
They’d fade, then rally. Each day, I watched their quills poke through their skin, their eyes open, then brighten, their voices change, their wings flutter, and I decided that I was going to see this through, these junk birds no one wanted, that I talked about just a little too much as I carted them around in their bowl. I would show my boys that you have to pair desire and love with action and sticking it out—or maybe I would show myself.
When I took the birds back to the playground to release them, I felt a pint-sized preview of motherhood to come. Were they prepared? Strong enough? Would they be careful? Would a freak accident or errant cat wipe them—and all my loving care—out in an instant? They’d have to be okay; what I’d done would have to be enough. They disappeared in the branches of the old fir tree and, though I thought I could still hear their baby voices, I never saw them again.
Something about the experience healed me; a small shift, a decision to show up and not give up and realize that the outcome might not be good, never mind perfect. Nature is the medium our souls recognize when they are hurting, not drugs and digital technology. The essays in this issue’s “The Healing Power of Nature” collection show us that when we surrender to something wild and uncontrollable, we can come back to ourselves. I hope that no matter where you live, you can find a tiny piece of something wild today and let it work its magic on you too.


volume 5 • issue 4
Amy McCraken
Editor
Cara McDonald
Dana Butler, Lisa Blake, Andra Coberly, Andrew Kensley, Allison LeCain, Blair Oliver, Laura Pritchett, Corey Radman, Tracy Ross, Shawna Van, Carrie Visintainer
Design
Shelley Lai
Contributing Photographers
Steve Glass, Matthew Graves, Kimberley Gavin
Advertising Sales
Amy McCraken, Tim Matthews, Melanie Mitchell, Cyprian Mendelius,Saundra Skrove
Anne Marie Martinez
Ad Sales Coordination
Allison LeCain
Social Media
Loren Faye
Distribution
Andrew McCraken
Printing & Pre-Press
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For advertising or editorial inquiries
970-797-9200
[email protected]
For subscriptions call 970-797-9200 or visit ftcollinsmag.com
Fort Collins Magazine is published quarterly by Evergreen Custom Media
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1939; Digital pigment print on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag paper


Whether he’s discussing Game of Thrones, Louie, or House of Cards, Saunders says it’s exciting to have such quality content to evaluate with students. The one thing those shows have in common, he observes, is that none of them are on a traditional network. Is it necessary to have nudity and swearing to create quality TV?


In the late 2000s, Homes was half of the Vail Valley folk duo Boxcar Daisies. But when it came time to go on tour for long stretches of time, bandmate Elli Gauthier wasn’t ready to leave her job, and Homes “wasn’t ready to tackle the music world” alone.

Laura Pritchett’s new novel, The Blue Hour, will be released in February.

Laura Resau is the author of The Lightning Queen and other books for young readers.
What makes it a don’t-miss? The intimacy of the production. The songs are soulful, the relationship sweet but complicated and the staging invites viewers to completely immerse themselves in the story—the show is set in an Irish pub, with audience members mingling on stage before the show and actors in character playing the fiddle and pouring pints. For tickets visit lctix.com. —Allison LeCain
From: VOM FASS Fort Collins
This heavenly matchup has salads singing with Styrian Pumpkin Seed Oil and Apple Balsamic Star cider vinegar. The tangy natural glaze can also be used on oven-roasted salt potatoes, duck and even vanilla ice cream.
123 N. College Ave.
970-232-9155
fortcollins.vomfassusa.com

Inside, though, is unlike any package I’ve ever received. It’s a cornucopia, and I say that knowing “cornucopia” sounds oldfangled and lame. But this is not lame. This is beautiful.
Neatly piled within the box, among ice packs and insulation, are plastic baggies of spices, fresh herbs, vegetables (lots of vegetables), grains and pasta. There’s a tiny box containing a single organic egg. Little jars of sauces and mixtures labeled “gazpacho” and “aji sauce” line one side, and cold containers of fish and chicken fill the bottom.
Purple, in all values and tones, influenced by browns, reds, blues and, of course, gray, can be either a bold statement or a soft, subtle background. Variations of purple convey different meanings: light purples are lighthearted, floral and romantic; the dark shades are more intellectual and dignified.
Form meets function in the Fusion from EcoSmart—a portable tootsie warmer that is more furniture than fireplace. This sleek and savvy cube runs on bioethanol, which is environmentally compatible and renewable. $6,470, ecosmartfire.com

this home on the range.
photography KIMBERLY GAVIN





In the center of the activity Mark Rashid sits atop a quiet chestnut horse. Dressed in a cotton button-down shirt, jeans and leather chaps, the horse trainer from Estes Park has a straw cowboy hat shading his face and sporty sunglasses shielding his eyes; it’s difficult to tell what he’s thinking, but his body language indicates patience. There’s no leaning in or pursing of lips to suggest scrutiny; his eyebrows aren’t furrowed.


You pull up to the closest liquor store with one thing running through your mind: Find something that will not max out your Visa nor make you look like a drinking neophyte at your buddy’s holiday party. You grab something you think you drank once—maybe, you can’t be sure—at a restaurant with tablecloths.
You hope for the best.
Usually, wine and alcohol are highly appreciated and convenient host gifts, but giving mediocre booze to your friends and family is no way to spread the holiday spirit. So we asked two local beverage pros to give us their top recommendations.
Interview by Corey Radman
