Justifiable Losses

Justifiable Losses

On the way home last Sunday,
from the mountains of lower Appalachia,
it rained earth and water, leaves and drizzle. 
It was an Alabama winter wonderland,
and it did not go unappreciated.
The humidity gave the rocks
a polished sheen, like coal
or a moonless night sky. 

Passing pastures, livestock,
dented pick-up trucks,
tractors on the road,
shacks with yard sales out front
and no one home, I wasn’t surprised
to see the church parking lots
full of cars.  It was
rural Alabama at its best.

As I made my way to the valley,
I drove past trees growing bare
and through them, I could see
what was hiding there.  Naked earth
where once was forest.  These hills,
once covered with a tapestry of changing colors,
were scalped with nothing to show
for their capture.  I mourned the loss, but then

I saw foreclosure signs
along the way,
and I asked myself,
who was I to judge?
Perhaps they justify
the destruction of wildlife habitats
as making ends meet
and keeping their homes.

We live in an age
where we humans have paid for,
and fenced off, this magnificent landscape
and labeled it with the words, “mine.”
I often wonder if God knew
what he was getting into
when he entrusted humans
to care for his garden. 

Perhaps He justifies these losses
as a tax write-off for education.
Like any good parent,
in an effort to teach His children
to appreciate what He has given,
perhaps He’s decided to allow us
to suffer our own consequences
and ground us for a while.

But also like a good parent,
I hope He is watching to see
if we’ve learned from our mistakes
and if we’ve grown to appreciate
what we have lost.  For isn’t it
the law of man to value most,
what we find scarce, and
the law of our Creator to teach, not to punish. 

It is time to please Him,
not with praise songs,
or attendance at church,
nor reading the good book,
nor memorizing scripture,
but by sharing with our fellow man
the gifts of this earth
and caring for His creations. 


SWPoet