A Look Back- Dear John

Old Friend , John and Marcy Woods by Earl Plato
“Make new friends but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold.”
John Lessle from Buffalo is an old friend. Like me he loves Marcy’s Woods. John knew the late Dr. George Marcy for many years. John came to my home Friday, July 25. He, like me, had read the Buffalo News account of Marcy Woods that same day. Like me he was saddened.
“Go to Marcy’s Woods?”, I asked him. John surprised me. “Earl, I’ve never been to Shagbark Trail in Ridgeway.” “Shagbark?” I said.
That’s where we went and walked the narrow trails of Shagbark hickory trail . All had grown in this summer. Where once there were wide trails now only narrow pathways exist. 85 year old John is a knowledgeable naturalist. He knows plants and their scientific names. Bee-Balm also called Oswego Tea greeted us at the beginning of the trail. “Monarda didyama.” “Pardon, John. Repeat that.” John crushed a leaf and a flower from the plant’s ragged scarlet pompon, “Smell this.” The pungent smell of mint was very strong. “Bee-Balm makes a good tea.” We saw many more Bee-Balm plants along the tangled way.
What surprised me in this new Fort Erie Town park was the profusity of False Solomom=Seal plants. Their easily identified leaves and their ruby red fruit were every where. I have been coming to Shagbark for years up unto 2000. A badly sprained achilles tendon kept me on the mend for almost two summers. Hey, three years have passed! Can things change that much in nature? You bet.
Shagbark Hickory Trail needs some help. What can be a beautiful town nature park needs some work just to maintain the trails. The Park is located off Burleigh Road just east of Ridgeway.
John Lessle is a ‘golden’ friend. That day before the saddening news of the Marcy’s Woods sale I drove John to the Woods. For over sixty years John had walked and photographed this unique area. “Do you want to walk in, John?” Almost as if he had known about the front page news that would follow the next day he said, “ No, Earl. Too many memories.” Memories of this special place is all we have.