Clear Cut - Doug von Koss

[Lawrence Robinson]

Clear Cut
 
Veni, Vidi, Fugil. 
I came, I saw, I ran away
I could not cope or manage
the hurt I saw and felt
 
The trees were gone
as far as my tear blind eyes could see
massive stumps marking the place
where old growth redwoods once stood
 
Where every Spring for years on end
I would walk among the giants
find that clearing near the stream and listen
listen to a silence like no other
 
Alone among the trillium and chest high ferns
alone on the cushion of the forest floor
listening to that sound, the sound of silence
I found true bliss among the giants
 
Now God forsaken stumps mark what once was
acre upon acre of old growth redwoods
clear cut and gone forever
and the sound of silence, it’s gone too
 
      - Doug von Koss
                            Near the Mendocino Woodlands