「The Lorax, a small fluff of Trufulla fae,
Came out of the tree I'd cut down that day」
The Once-ler thought back to the Lorax
The one whose tongue brought memories back
『「I am the Lorax, I speak for the trees
I have words to say to you, if you please
I speak for the trees, as they have no tongues
I ask you now, from the top of my lungs
Why are you here?」He'd said in a huff
「And what have you done to my Truffula tuft?!」』
The Once-ler shook his head, closing his eyes
So many years since; oh, how time has flown by
The days when he spent time with this sprite
And the animals. It had been such delight!
Playing music with the Humming Fish,
Listening to the Swans' pitch
And dancing with the Bar-ba-loots,
The Lorax explaining the trees from their roots
Ten months to germinate, he'd said,
Ten more years, not even tufts on their heads!
At one-and-twenty, they become full trees
And the Lorax turned to the Once-ler 「Please?
Don't chop the rest down; we all need them, see?
They give us fresh fruit, and the air we breathe
Your Thneed cannot do this, though it does much
Perhaps pulling some tufts. It won't hurt. Not enough
That the trees won't be able to heal at all
It'd be much better than seeing another fall」
As he tried to sell his marvelous Thneed,
The time he spent came haunting me
The animals and Lorax were all so kind
But he would quickly push that from his mind
He wanted to be one of the Greats,
As those before him, who'd helped progression take place
He would sing and jive, he'd have a good time
But people would throw tomatoes and limes
He'd be kicked out of town, sent home walking
The Once-ler would stay in his shop, never talking
Didn't anyone see how the Thneed was great!
All of the useless junk it'd replace?!
He sat under a tree, looking to the sky
Then came the Lorax, who sat next to this guy
At first, the Once-ler ignored the strange sprite
Thinking his sadness was the other's delight
But many days passed, the Once-ler dejected
To the Valley, he'd go, never rejected
He showed his new friends his music, sweets,
And they would look at the stars, hidden, discrete
And the Lorax would tell him of old lore
Of a time when trees ruled over. He'd soar
With the Swans and dive with the Fish
And dance with the Bar-ba-loots if he wished
Oh wonderful place was this Valley,
But the Once-ler never told the little laddy
Of these little details, oh dear no
For there are some secrets for the Once-ler alone
Endearing things and feelings, sensations
The boy was too green to have this information
And of all things, it made the Once-ler feel small
To know the Lorax became his greatest friend of all
Notes:
*"And the Lorax would tell him of old lore" - The Lorax is the spiritual counter-product of deforestation. Thusly, he is the Lore of the Ax.
*"To know the Lorax became his greatest friend of all" - Shakespeare often used a different word for "friend" in the play Julius Caesar: "lover"
