An ode to Earth Day:  Saturday,  April 22, 2023

Sitting under a tree, with the sun shining down,

All alone with my thoughts and no one around,

Only the peaceful melody of nature’s sounds,

How much clearer I think, when I’m all alone…

I thought to myself, Mother Nature sure is great,

All of a sudden I heard:  “Please leave it that way!”

And then:  “Please stay and listen to my friends!”

Was it my imagination, a dream or maybe the wind?

Then a small bird appeared in front of me,

The most beautiful bird that I’d ever seen,

It said:  “Windmills, planes and pollution ruin the sky,

and it’s the only place that we have to fly”…

Then, a squirrel appeared in front of me,

With the bushiest tail that I’d ever seen,

He said:  “I hope you’ve enjoyed sitting under my tree,

they cut down too many and never think about me”…

Humbled and amazed, I went to the brook for a drink,

There a very large fish and clearly spoke his piece,

He said:  “Don’t drink the water, it might make you ill,

they think that our streams are just a landfill”…

Then others appeared, telling how it used be,

When their world was much larger, untouched and free,

Everything was beautiful, natural and clean,

The forest was theirs and they weren’t made to leave…

I said: “I’m sorry Mother Nature, now I understand,

but, what can I do, I’m only one man”,

She said:  “Share what you’ve learned and and don’t be a fool,

if you all join together there’s so much you can do”…

And so I hurried home and I planted a tree,

I filled my bird feeders with fresh new bird seed,

I put up a fence to keep people away,

From the place where the squirrels and other animals play…

Then, I walked up and down that stream,

Picking-up what I could to try to keep it clean,

From now on I promise to do everything I can,

Even though I know, I’m only one man…

So, I wrote down what I learned and I’m sharing it with you,

If we all join together, there’s so much we can do,

I hope that you’ll join me in this noble plan,

It was probably just the wind ~ but, now I understand!