A Sad Follow-Up To

American Forest Blues

“Last night I had a crazy dream,

I didn’t ask for money,

Or a mansion in Malibu;

All I asked for,

Was one more day,

With you.”

Diamond Rio,

One More Day With You

Sadness truly filled both my heart and my soul

As I wandered a familiar country path yesterday

A forest that had stood here, since my childhood

Had suddenly vanished, it had been bulldozed away

I’ll never forget the day I first saw it

Almost fifty years ago, it has to be now

I had taken a train out here from the big city

How this forest had captivated me somehow

Gigantic green trees of every kind, shape, and size

Wondrous feathered creatures, singing in these trees

A myriad of glorious wildlife, scampering all about here

The fragrant smell of pine, in the lovely afternoon breeze

A truly splendid natural haven, provided by Earth’s Creator

A place harried city dwellers could go to relax and to unwind

But it seems the wondrous gifts He has given, are not appreciated

Instead of savoring Earth’s wonders, we treat them callously unkind

As I now stood on this barren hillside, in sadness and dismay

I soon spotted a garish sign, proclaiming its modern day news

‘Coming Soon, Right Here, A Fabulous New Shopping Mall’

Signs like these, these days, truly give me the Modern Day Blues

As I very sadly headed off back towards home

I glumly realized my dreams were being crushed

I now truly believe that we are killing our planet

In a blind, manic, greed-filled, modern day rush

Over half of Earth’s glorious forests,

Have already been bulldozed away;

And now, I very sadly have to wonder,

How many malls do we really need today?

“One more day, one more time,

One more glimpse, maybe I'd be satisfied;

But then again; I know what it would do,

It would leave me wishing still,

For just one more glorious day,

With you.”

©2008, Mr. Ed