At home with nature

 

I never felt more at home in nature 

Than I did as an eight year old youngster

My delight was walking around the wild woods

Listening to the birds announcing me there

Telling all the critters I was there again

Squirrels would look down at me from the trees

And snakes now warned would slither away 

So rather than that I wander about

Sat down with my back to an old oak tree

To show that I certainly meant no harm

So that they slowly resumed their duties

The birds swooping around after insectss

The squirrels now leaping from limb to limb

A fox looking at me from far away

Keeping very still the creatures relaxed

Birds chatting away high above me

A hedgehog lumbered past me unafraid

And high in a tree an owl now peered down

Turned his head with one eye looked backwards

Then stayed like that for a few minutes

Now satisfied I was no threat turned away

Years later my wife and I did this too

Settling down in wild places overseas

All creatures are happy if you're no threat

Unless they have their young offspring close by

If only we would treat them with respect

Then they would know we do them no harm

We would then find they would not hide away

Illustration found at www.pixabay.com

It's time to stop

Fish are dying on the sandy shore
Native species soon will be no more
As habitat drives them far away
Foreign predators will have their say

Dolphins injured at port's river mouth
Speedboats and skiers are so uncouth
Seals are gashed boats propeller blades
What one was Heaven is now Hades

Mankind is such an ugly creature
Thinks nothing of each precious feature
Struts his way around our precious world
Thinks he owns it all when flags unfurled

Forests whisper of mans many wrongs
While all wolves and whales sing their sad songs
As pollution spreads like a disease
As man sits back with arrogant ease

Everybody, please save our precious world
And let all creatures sleep safely curled
Forests breathe out so we all may live
Man! It's time to stop the take... and give!

Image 1 found at https://pixabay.com/en/wolf-howling-animal-wild-nature-1992716/
Image 2 found at https://pixabay.com/en/humpback-whale-jumping-breaching-1984341/

A day in the forest

Dawn; faint glittering rays of sunshine
Now beams through the branches of the trees
The forest awakes this summer morn
Now some unwelcome guests appear
Just up Hillside road woodcutters are here

Trucks arrive as teams now start their job
Trees chosen are cleared at their base
For first bite of axe this day's morn
Then faint groans, birds fly off in haste
The workmen's manner quite wooden faced

As trees fall, forest life has all fled
Rotary blades trim off the waste
Trees left now whisper quite forlorn
As smell of sawdust fills the air
While workers joke a laugh without care

Felled timber is taken from the scene
As melting sun sinks in the west
A terrace of tree stumps looks forlorn
Returning wildlife see their sad plight
They know they'll need new shelter tonight

Image found at https://pixabay.com/en/forest-cut-down-a-tree-trunk-tree-2995502/