Family Tree

Today I walked on a path through the swamp, and found myself thinking of my dad. He lived in the swamp for a little while--'til the rangers found out about it and impounded his tent. I found a note about it that recent rainy day in the shed. The note said he could go get his stuff and wouldn't be in trouble, but I'm pretty sure he never did. Then he'd have to make nice.

There were great trees in the swamp today. Dad often said that some of his best friends were trees. They may have understood him better than the rest of us were able to.

As I walked along the nature trail, admiring the new life of the April trees, I came to this sign:

A Fallen Log
When a tree dies, its role in the forest does
not end. A fallen log is really the forerunner
of future forests. Its rotting wood, through
the work of plants, bacteria, and insects,
enriches the soil so that other plants
may grow.

We do carry on.