It is going to be a hard winter this year for the creatures of the forest. They’re going to need your help. This year, the trees have produced very few nuts, unlike in recent years. There will be much hunger. 

Also the trees themselves are not doing well this year. They seem to be under attack by some disease. The signs are light, pale blue patches that look like lichens. The disease attacks the wood in the branches and trunk of the tree, destroying its structural integrity. While the disease may leave the tree standing, as it progresses, the tree increasingly becomes a hazard to wind and storm, to people, power lines and dwellings.

If you go into the woods, it is easy to find places that have become scenes of devastation from the disease. All the dead fall has disrupted the trail systems of the deer, causing them further hardship. 

So the trees are not doing well, and neither will the animals of the woods who depend upon them.

Give generously to your fellow beings what and wheresoever they are.

Charles St. Pierre

Norwich