I find this image  typical of my childhood. The sign, right wham bang in the middle, says “Betreten Verboten“, which means KEEP OUT. This sign turns everything beyond that point into a living picture, just like a stage or TV. It is the lushest most beautiful landscape, but…  all you can do is sit and watch. Over in the distance at the edge of the trees, the little white spots is a group of grazing deer. It is  a very peaceful living picture. Of course, I know now, without the sign there would be no lush and beautiful landscape. It would be trampled all over and the deer would be scared deeper into the woods.

There were a lot of Betreten Verboten Signs scattered around my life and I believe this is one of life’s great lessons: To learn which ones need to be obeyed, which ones can be safely ignored and which ones need to be fought against.