I heard one day
while watching tv
that I did not live in civilization.

That the imperial forests that played host
to passing time and my existence
And the big and little towns that housed the meek
Were not really empires, towns, or cities at all.

Had for so long, I pondered, I lived amongst the emerald castles,
the winding concrete 101 serpent,
and the pungent reek of two kinds of skunk
That I never realized that I was lost
In a blank void.

Did the people, who scurried like ants
(Or wasps, if more fitting a temperament)
to fulfill the basic duties
of their now apparently pitiful and insignificant lives
Not really exist?

Did I even exist?
If a tree falls in a forest with nobody in it,
no one can tell if it makes a sound.
If I live where nobody pays me heed
am I not still standing resolutely as
soft flesh
and sticky, warm ruby blood that runs so deep?

I quickly switched the TV off ...

Why should I care
if nobody sees me?

The redwoods
Like sentinels so silent behind the curtain of smoke and sea fog
Guard my lost home
Devoid of posh silver spoons
Or poignant electoral debates.
It remains wild amidst the void
Of the green emperors.