NEWS-PRESS
Guest Opinion:
Paul Reynolds
On the first day of Christmas,
the water managers sent to me
a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the second day of Christmas,
the same folks sent to me
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the third day of Christmas,
they forwarded to me
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the fourth day of Christmas,
the good folks sent to me
Four Christmas cards from Bubba,
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the fifth day of Christmas,
my true friends sent to me
Five pricey bags of sugar,
Four Christmas cards from Bubba,
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the sixth day of Christmas,
my true friends sent to me
a six-foot wall of water,
Five pricey bags of sugar,
Four Christmas cards from Bubba,
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the seventh day of Christmas,
my water buddies sent to me
Seven fish with lesions,
a six-foot wall of water,
Five pricey bags of sugar,
Four Christmas cards from Bubba,
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the eighth day of Christmas,
my true friends sent to me
Eight water laws a'breakin,
Seven fish with lesions,
a six-foot wall of water,
Five pricey bags of sugar,
Four Christmas cards from Bubba,
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the ninth day of Christmas,
my pals sent to me
Nine vacation cancellations,
Eight water laws a'breakin,
Seven fish with lesions,
a six-foot wall of water,
Five pricey bags of sugar,
Four Christmas cards from Bubba,
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
On the tenth day of Christmas,
my true reps sent to me
Ten politicians feeding,
Nine vacation cancellations,
Eight water laws a'breakin,
Seven fish with lesions,
a six-foot wall of water,
Five pricey bags of sugar,
Four Christmas cards from Bubba,
Three dead manatees,
Two red tide episodes,
And a brand new form of toxic algae.
— Paul Reynolds resides in Sanibel. He is an activist on
issues regarding Lake Okeechobee and the Caloosahatchee River. He is a
volunteer, belongs to numerous local groups and boards, and is president of the
Sanibel-Captiva Republican Club.
Paul Reynolds <PR@PaulReynolds.us>
Editor's note: Editors at The News-Press received a copy of the author's work with the subject line: Ten Days of Christmas from SFWMD (South Florida Water Management District). He allowed us to run it in our opinion pages.