In the pandemic work has been scarce
And rent is still not free
So I was ecstatic when an old hermit
Said he had yard work for me.
He showed me what once was a noble old cedar
That once proudly stood in the park
Until some young people, for whatever reason,
Stripped the old tree of its bark.
The old man had hired me to glue to the cedar
A fresh set of bark, to restore
A tree to its glory. That ends not the story
Because, yes, you guessed it… there’s more
For In the pandemic, unemployed and discouraged
I’d taken to habits of drinking,
And on that bright morning I set off to work
I was out of the habit of thinking.
With heart full of vigor and head well hungover
I glued on a bucket of bark
And though the idea at first seemed uncanny
The contrast, in hindsight, was stark!
And then the old hermit came to see progress
And laughed with a senile glee,
Saying “I meant the cedar beside the bench, boy.
“I’m afraid you’re barking up the wrong tree!”
The Daily Travesty 