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back. Were there tribes that hunted here? Was this even a thick-wooded mountain back then? Will always thought he belonged in a different century, perhaps when new settlers were pioneering across the west. He wondered how well he would have managed knowing how many had perished on their journey westward in search of fortune.
    Will’s hunger began to control his thoughts as he rounded one of the final switchbacks coming off of the mountain. All he had brought for his breakfast was a granola bar that he had eaten earlier when he began to pack up his camp. He always brought a spare as emergency food if he got lost or stranded from an injury. He assumed getting lost would never happen since he knew the woods so well from exploring. However, some of the most experienced outdoorsmen become prey to injury from unexpected falls or even wildlife. He chose not to eat his spare granola bar as this was not an emergency. The several hours it took to climb up was cut in half on the descent. He had figured if his timing was correct, and it usually was, he would arrive home in time for a late lunch. For Sunday lunches his mother usually made a large pot of hearty chicken and rice soup and grilled-cheese sandwiches for the whole family and many times a house full of guests as well. His mother, Beth, knew he would be returning from his camping trip around that time. The thought of the food made his stomach ache and grumble. He decided to think of other things to take his mind off of the food.
    His thoughts began to fall back to the state of the country and his situation. Even though it was the depressing news is what drove him out into nature, spending some time out allowed him to keep a neutral mindset on the situation now. He thought of the chain of events over the past few years and how it had molded his life. Will had been packing his things in his college dorm room after finishing up his sophomore year when he received a call. His uncle broke the news to him that his father had been killed in a car accident. His father had been a long-time head pastor at a small church in Oakhurst. His father had taught him everything. Will knew he was basically a clone of his father. It was after the funeral that Will drove up into the mountains with his dress slacks and shirt and black tie still on. That was the first time he came upon his secret camping spot. Will’s father had always known about the somber moods that would bring Will down for a time because he also dealt with them. Many times his father gave him the advice to drop everything and go out into the wilderness to get rid of the mood, knowing how much Will enjoyed the outdoors.
    Will had every intention of returning to college for his junior year, however, the economy determined differently for him. His father had kept a life insurance policy that allowed them to keep their home that was nestled on a few acres outside of town. However, Will’s mother’s income from working in a local gift shop that featured all-things Yosemite National Park was not enough to pay for the rising tuition costs. Will had spent a week later in the summer in San Jose looking for a job to pay for tuition on his own but found many of the retail businesses around his campus had recently become vacant or couldn’t afford to take on an employee. They weren’t able to survive an economic downturn caused by major tax increases and forced costs by the government, especially when most of their clientele were students who were home for the summer. The few offers Will received were very low paying, under-the-table, part time jobs that even if they could have covered tuition, they would have never covered his living expenses as well. The work situation in his hometown of Oakhurst quickly mirrored the bigger city area of San Jose. Will had no choice but to stay living at home. He was now twenty-four years old and there was no end in sight to the economic turmoil that plagued the country and college could not be seen on