LUMBER

 

 

 LUMBER

I usually walk with my friend John 

Around Forest Hills High School

Each lap is something like a half a mile

We usually do two laps

Sometimes four

As I was waiting for him to meet me in the little sitting area

Belonging to the apartment building where I live

I began observing a nearby tree which looked bare

Except for a few budding leaves at the end of its branches 

A welcomed sign on a blustery cold day in early March 

That spring was preparing to appear

We walked together to the high school

Did our usual stretching exercises

In the middle of the fourth lap 

I noticed a truck parked by the side of the road

Loaded with containers of lumber displaying 

Made in the USA

And an idyllic name

Pleasant River

Like the cans of Campbell soup 

Made famous by Andy Warhol

The identical boxes of Pleasant River lumber 

Seemed to me an  interesting Pop Art design

So I took out my iPhone 6 and snapped a photo

When I got home and saw the picture

I wondered if the Pleasant River lumber comes 

From trees specifically grown

For commercial  purposes   

Which made me question why some trees 

Get to live out their natural life

In grassy areas kept neat for apartment dwellers

While the fate of other trees are sealed from birth