House Of Rhyme

If a tale could be told in a rhyme of a wood back once upon a time then a mystery could be revealed through secret lips that had once been sealed .
Once upon a time there was a wood where no one went and in there you could have heard the whisper among the trees and if you listened hard through the leaves you might have heard some stories that rhyme where fairy's dwell in a magic time .
But progress or greed often erodes like the forests that make way for roads . We can’t see the branches being bent in thye wood where no ever went .
If we can’t see the tall trees for towns all we have is concrete that surrounds .
What a shame the timber company never bothered to replant a tree .
In area’s they can’t compensate for the dead trees now it’s much too late .

It would take many years to renew growth in a wood that no one knew grew .
What price must once harboured creatures pay who have no habitat left to stay ?
They say that progress comes at a cost but what of the lifestyle they have lost .

The sawmill took more than it could give , it built huts for the workers to live . The sawmill with its no stop production left forest’s with total destruction . They never cared as all the trees dropped night and day the sawmill never stopped .
Mr Toran we’ll say was the boss, in his sawmill where he made a cross for everyone to carry but him and his workers never wore a grin as he was mean and rude to his men and then he sacked them every now and then with a pittance he paid those who stayed unless they like the trees dropped down dead .

And so the sawmill came to the end , no trees to cut no time to amend . The forest was gone and sadly missed , the last wages paid from a tight fist .
Toran said goodbye to all his men and grumbled with what was owed to them .

Then one cold dark night he sat alone in the cottage he had called his home , Toran sat in front of the fireplace as embers died with a cold embrace . So he took a walk to the wood heap and as he walked he heard someione speak .
“Who’s there ?”
Toran asked but no one spoke .
He thought his mind was playing a joke .
Into the house he was returning with plenty of logs there for burning .
He knelt down before the dying fire and threw a log as flames jumped higher .
The embers glowed and a screamed out
"Stop what you're doing you stupid lout ."
Toran nearly had a heart attack .
"Who’s there ?"
He said , no answer came back .
Toran knelt before the fire again and placed some log’s on a hungry flame .
Again a voice screamed,
" Hey . I'm the fire but I’m not here for you to admire . Before I’m dead I'd like you to see , how these logs were once part of a tree ."
"Who said that ?”
he shouted angrily .

"Get off your knee, before you burn me I’m going to make you understand , for the life of mer you can’t demand , any more leaves or anymore wood . Get it straight , it must be understood , you have a debt I’m here to collect , so Toran this is the big pay back .”

Toran jumped up to his feet in fright ,and said on that cold dark winters night

"Listen I don’t have any money , there’s nothing kept here . So leave me be ."

Then he heard a knock upon the door and reached for the big stick on the floor .
But the stick began to shake and said ,
"Hey . Don't grab me or I’ll bang your head . I once was part of a lovely tree , before your greed took the life from me ."
Toran dropped the stick and ran away into the kitchen and screamed
“OK”.
He sat on a chair his nerves were frayed as the chair rocked back and to him said ,
" Don't sit on me I once was a tree , but you chopped down what I used to be . For too long now you've taken too much and now don't take what you want to touch . Now its time for you to be afraid, we're things you made in you're timber trade ."
Old Toran began to sweat and shake like the sulphur pouring from an earthquake .
He was mad with rage and then he spat to all of the house he shouted back .
"No not ever , I'll never repent . Nothing for you , not one lousy cent and nothing will I ever regret so don't come to be speaking of debt . Leave me here to what's rightfully mine , because all of you are out of line ."
Then he felt good when he had a say and left the chair at the end of day , up the stairs he decided to go , each step on the way a voice said ,
“No . Hey don't step on me . Can’t you see , Once upon a time I was a tree but now look at me I'm just a stair ,it's all so cruel its so unfair . It's all your fault , Its because of you, that I'm cut in two and stuck with glue, I’ve been hammered and nailed just so you can get upstairs buy I’m telling you . I reckon the debt you’ll have to pay for your time has come ,this is the day ."
The stairs tossed him up into the air he fell to the floor and landed there heavily he fell there was no choice , a door opened with another voice .
"Hey , look at me I'm not just a door I used to be a tall tree before . . So before you can walk out the door you must understand and pay some more . You see that chair the one over there , with her I stood in the open air . My son is your bed, my daughters wood were logs that burnt in the fire good . We were all living tree families ,so now its time to pay , if you please .
The rafters echoed ,
" Look up at me , , once I was a tree now look at me .. I can no longer grow all my fruits , you’ve killed my leaves and pulled up my roots , so give life back and learn to respect the woods that once grew , want something back ."
Toran was worried and ran and hid . But the house said
“I saw what you did . The wardrobe shook and so did the bed then the house again furiously said ,
"Don't live in me I once was a tree . Then you cut down all my family There were we reaching up to the sky but we fell down and began to die , we were all chopped up you cut us down . But what goes around will come around and into the woods where no one knows you will be planted where nothing grows .
The house and furniture had some fun , they took his life and then it was done .
They took their revenge , Toran was dead .
There was silence , not a word was said .
Suddenly flames went up overhead ,
The house was alight the debt was paid .
Now ends the story that you have read .

By Paul Mc Cann