crackling fire popping hissing burning
orange red blue flames
smoke thick-a suffocating gray mass into the air
got my split ax and I’m chopping wood
nice and clean for future blazes
always was an apprentice pyromaniac
brownish green leaves waiting for the first frost
to break out their gold and red raincoats
some on the ground already crunch crunch crunch under my brown boots
family of badgers down by the lake
nestling in nicely as autumn settles in
got my office and radio— maps on the wall
my log filled in, logs outside stacked neatly
my desk old school pine with scratches aplenty
a million dollar view of the woods
at least to me it is
I like it here -- I love nature
I'm mr. forest ranger man doin’ what I can
drivin’ my jeep around the grounds
I like when it gets cold and snows
the park is virtually empty
no damn campers wandering around getting lost
no having to go out and search for them
just a nice relaxing afternoon
a little irish coffee to keep warm on those brisk days and twilights
because the heater in the office is so pathetically small
might as well not have one
my yard at home state park special
leaves and sticks not much grass if any at all
the neighbors love me for it I’m sure
their perfectly manicured lawns and bushes
sprinklers coming on precisely when set
plants just so--just so sterile like the world they live in
