(148KB)

"Find the wedges and sharpen the axe,
We're gonna go cut some wood;
There's a dead red-oak down by the creek,
I reckon it'll split real good."

With these words, Papa headed to the shed,
To sharpen and ready the saw;
While brothers and me did what he said,
One cloudy mornin' late Fall.

With the tail-gate down, we loaded the truck,
Papa drove with us in back;
Rattlin' on, we could see where we'd been,
Old truck was leave'n its track.

We made our way across the creek-bottom,
The truck slow'n up to a crawl;
Papa got out... walked 'round the tree,
Size'n-up just where it should fall.

"We'll drop her clean and throw her south,
'Cause her top's a-lean'n that way";
We'd learned by then it was good as done,
Trees did whatever Papa would say.

She fell real slow but hit the ground hard,
Tear'n all her limbs asunder;
Mama said later... "I knew when it fell,
It sounded a lot like thunder!"

We all worked hard... seems half-a-day,
Saw'n-up and split'n that wood;
It took three trips with that pick-up truck,
Each time we doubted it could.

By late in the day when brothers and me,
Finished stack'n it away in the shed;
Our neighbor's two boys come want'n to play,
But we lay'd on the porch... instead.