The view from my study window is bleak right now. The small patch of woodland behind the house has been exposed by the falling leaves as a very small patch indeed. Autumn may be a pretty season, but the fall of the leaves reveals landscapes of almost unbelievable dreariness. We need those trees, but we are getting rid of them as fast as we can. It’s a rare day when the buzz of chainsaws can’t be heard somewhere in the neighborhood. Homeowners worry about falling trees that may demolish their houses or cut their power. Developers are nervous about falling profits as the last scraps of land are used up. Trees are an obstacle to the march of suburban progress. Woods and forests have been vanishing ever since man discovered fire and invented the barbecue. But in the past few centuries it seems that we have been trying to finish the job and create a desert. Long Island was once 90% forest. Most of it has been turned into suburban homes like ours, pine kitchen, and polished wood floors.