Return to Paradise
As I walk through the swamps
in this the great north,
A warm, content grin creeps across my face
like a snake through short grass.
My job, is to watch over this wild land;
it's occupants in danger from poachers.
Between swamps are the trails which spread
themselves wherever there is forest,
wherever there are trees.
My pay, I need very little.
Taxes, food, shelter, and hunting
supplies I buy with it.
The rest is saved for retirement,
so I may live here as long as I wish.
A two way radio and a computer
are all I need for communication now.
I have escaped from the hectic city life and
found a place where a feeling of peace
and wellness envelopes everything it touches
in a world where such a thing as peace is often
found only in sleep.
I am the Shadow Walker.
I reside in the trees.
From my perch I scan the forest,
not for people with guns,
but wild senseless animals
who have taken the shape of man
so they may kill those animals
which I have sworn to protect,
and are as defenceless as nature is beautiful.
I go home to my love, smile
and give her a kiss. We smile
and listen to the weather on the radio.
Tonight it will rain again, making a
steady, rhythmic sound of water hitting
tin roof which could put even the worst
insomniac in a deep sleep.
I watch my love's face; it's lines and curves
are like that of a fawn.
I wake up the next morning,
and go on my way.
As I walk through the swamps in this
the great north, I can't help but smile.
-Eric Zimmerman. 1998