Loblolly

Pines. Its Loblolly. Loblolly.

I went with my daughter
on a field trip to Clemmons
State Forest this morning. They
have an educational walking
trail.

The kids, the teachers
and the parents all hobbling along,
learning about trees and their
roles in the environment.

Today is Earth Day, you know.

Every 5o yards or so we would
all stop and the teacher would push
a button on post and we would hear
a prerecorded message about a
particular tree.

Do we live in the Pine Tree state?

Uh, yes.

"What is it called? Lalalolly?" a Mother asked.

"Lelolly?" another said.

"Balolly?" another said.

I thought, "what a bunch of ditzes."

I can be that way sometimes.

I murmured, "its loblolly."

"lobolly," the first Mother said.

"Its LOB LOLLY...LOBLOLLY."

"Oh, loblolly!" they chimed in unison.

We continued on our hike.