Words for the Woods
Les Czestow
Dear Editor,
I have to tell you and your readers that something very troubling is happening in Millsville. It is a problem that is happening in many towns around the country. I was hoping it wouldn't come to our town, but it has.
Deron stopped writing for a moment and wondered how he would convey his message. He felt so strongly about it that he wasn't sure he had the right words to express himself. He wanted to be clear and honest, but strong at the same time. As he thought, he slipped back into memories of the last few months.
Deron had greeted summer vacation happily. The weather was beautiful. He was eager to get more time to play sports and hike in the woods with his friends. When he heard he'd be spending much of his summer with an aunt in a big city, Deron groaned. The city was fun to visit, with its busy streets and bright lights. But he wasn't sure he wanted to spend most of the summer there.
On the trip to his aunt's, Deron noticed how the highway was dotted with stores and malls. They looked so similar, Deron wondered if the car was going in circles. Every town had a mall. Every mall was almost the same. It had a coffee place and a clothing place. It had a pizza place and a sandwich place. It had a department store and a store for phones and TVs. The buildings were all the same, plain and faceless.
The two-hour drive was boring because everything looked the same. By the time Deron got to the city, he was tired of seeing streets and stores all over. He longed to return home to the woods he'd loved to hike since he was a little kid.
When he got home, after six weeks in the city, Deron was shocked by what he found. He was looking for trees and hills. All he saw were flat, ruined wastelands. Bulldozers and earth-moving machines sat in big muddy ruts. Tree stumps and roots lay all around.
He shook out of his memory and started writing again.
You may not have noticed the problem, but I sure have. The woods in Millville are being destroyed to make way for a new mall. After traveling out of Millville, I realized that so much of our country has already been ripped down and turned into malls. We don't need any more malls! What we need is our woods.
Deron felt a lump in his throat. He thought about all the fun he and his friends had as kids playing in the woods. They'd climbed trees, raced bikes, jumped in leaves, and swam in the pond. That time was apparently over—forever. Now the woods would be gone. If Deron ever had children, they wouldn't even know what the woods were like. They'd only have malls.
I think everyone in Millville should speak up. We should contact the construction company and ask them to please stop what they're doing. We should form a group to discuss ways we can save our woods. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.
Deron put down his pen and reread what he had written. He sighed at the thought of what was changing in his hometown. Then he thought about what was changing in his own life. A few weeks ago, he was a kid whose only concern was games.
Now, Deron was jumping into a new role, as a person who watches the world around him and tries to defend what he values. All at once, in a feeling that was both good and bad, Deron realized he was becoming an adult.
What may be inferred about Deron from this passage?
Responses
A He likes his aunt.He likes his aunt.
B He dislikes his aunt.He dislikes his aunt.
C He prefers the city to the countryside.He prefers the city to the countryside.
D He doesn't see value in shopping malls.He doesn't see value in shopping malls.
5 answers
Responses
A Deron finds that society is changing in a bad way and grows hopeless with despair.Deron finds that society is changing in a bad way and grows hopeless with despair.
B Deron finds that society is changing in a bad way and decides to fight against this change.Deron finds that society is changing in a bad way and decides to fight against this change.
C Deron finds that the city is a worse place to live than the country but opts to stay in the city.Deron finds that the city is a worse place to live than the country but opts to stay in the city.
D Deron finds that the city is a worse place to live than the country and opts to stay in the country.
Responses
A Seeing what the city was actually like.Seeing what the city was actually like.
B Having to spend the summer with his aunt.Having to spend the summer with his aunt.
C Growing up playing with his friends in the woods.Growing up playing with his friends in the woods.
D Finding out that the woods are being demolished in his hometown.Finding out that the woods are being demolished in his hometown.