THE OLD SETTLERS' DUMPING GROUND

A carpet of bitter green moss covers the ground of a low sinkhole where the woods meet the quarry bank. No grass grows here, only a few straggly weeds and clumps of briar roses that have long ago lost their leaves & flowers. Only a few bare thorn-studded
canes guard the pile of junk that is slowly melding into the second-growth woodland that has replaced the fields and gardens on the first settlers.. The moss has crept over the larger pieces of debris as well as the rocks and stones tossed and piled among the junk, coloring everything the same bitter green

A glint of bright cobalt blue suddenly catches our eyes -an old bottle tucked between the stones. Perhaps it’s worth something? Look, but don’t touch, be careful, everything here is broken. A jiggle of stones and another gleam. This one moves – an over-fed woodchuck picks his way very carefully through the clutter. If he sees us watching, he gives no sign. Many cans were once tossed here, most with bits of food still clinging inside them. All kinds of creatures use this place as a stop’n shop –tiny mice, bigger rats, possums, skunks & dog-sized coyotes. They come & go quietly, usually it’s a slight shifting in the mound of debris that gives away their presence.

The farmers that tossed their junk in this place have long gone. Their fields have either reverted to woodland or bought by developers. The chirping and calls of various birds are heard loud and clear;. the highway and scattered summer trailers are far away. It’s peaceful but dangerous – three-leafed poison ivy vines trail through the stones. Maybe some of the bottles are still unbroken and valuable. More likely the larger rocks are home to a group of skunks. Snakes sleep in the nooks and crannies, when we’ve left they will spread out on the flatter rocks and sun themselves. Better not to disturb whoever is resting in this mossy shelter. Better to walk slowly away, remembering that one man’s junkyard can be nature’s trap for the unwary.