I live in a large apartment complex.The apartments, along with numerous single family dwellings, are carved out of a thick wooded area next to a rather large lake. The woods serve to hide each area from the other and provide a sense of privacy for the human dwellers.

The woods appear old; vines drape themselves throughout. It’s as if it has been left to its own devices to grow and decay. There are small trees that have succumbed to disease and lie rotting on the ground. Those that have been broken in storms lie close by. The impression is of a dark, damp  primitive forest.

A creek meanders through the woods providing water for thirsty animals and a place for the woods to exist. At either end of the creek are ponds, scummy now in late summer, where waterfowl survive. Squirrels and birds and probably raccoons, though I didn’t see  any, make their homes in the woods as I would guess do other wildlife. I saw no evidence to the contrary.

I took a walk behind the complex just to explore what was back there. I saw fast food bags and containers, beer cans and other debris littered along the edges of this seemingly prehistoric woods giving the illusion of a counterfeit setting staged for some unknown effect. One could tell the animals had enjoyed the remnants of what had been left in the bags, which were ripped and torn asunder; their contents strewn not far from where they lie. I wasn’t too surprised though. Humans try to hide the behavior that’s not permitted and it ends up ruining our planet.