“The land doesn’t belong to me, it doesn’t belong to any of us,” says Joshua Tree resident Rand Abbott. “We’re guests here on this earth. It’s my responsibility to make sure that my daughter’s children’s children get to see what Joshua Tree is really like not just from a video or from a book.” Joshua Tree National Park feels like an extension of Rand’s backyard– a place where he can climb, watch wildlife or find solace through big changes in his life. When a partial shutdown of the US government in December 2018 left J-Tree open but unmonitored, Rand became a voice of reason to take care of a place he cherishes.

Music: If Walls Could Talk by Jacob Bain & Nis Kotto  •  Harbor by Kai Engel  •   erik by Fog Lake   •  Frontier by Canyon Kids  •  Tracks provided by Free Music Archive or with permission from the artists.