The earth said
remember me.
The earth said
don't let go.....*
The whales say the sea is too warm.
The polar bears say there is no ice.
The trees say "we thirst", yet,
some miles away, the highways
are all turning into rivers.
We poets used to write about wonder:
sunrises, sunsets, magical blooms,
and now our poems are full of warnings:
lower emissions! plant more trees!
The news is full of bombs and shattered buildings,
of drought and famine, wildfires and floods,
like the prophecies of end times
have come to pass
and hold us in their grasp.
Yet, out there, and all around,
there is still the wild world,
lit with radiant glow,
telling us: remember me.
Telling us: don't let go.
for earthweal where we are contemplating the poetry of Jorie Graham, and what our job as poets is during the escalating climate crisis. *The italicized lines are hers.
I love this one. Sometimes it all gets a bit much. We need to keep reminding each other not to let go of our visions for a better world. Thanks for reminding me today. :) Suzanne- Mapping Uncertainty
ReplyDeleteIf we get numb to what's happening because it's too big and too much out of our control... we will let go..the thought is terrifying.
ReplyDeleteWhat I love about Graham is her ability to embrace both voices, a sense of outrage mixed with one of resilient wonder. Both are here too and remind me of the earthweal adage, the grief is real, so is the hope.
ReplyDeleteIt does seem like end times, yet...we can't give up. We can't.
ReplyDeleteWe must remember to never let go and strive for a better world for generations to come.
ReplyDeleteSo true...the subjects in poetry have indeed changed fromn things of wonder to warnings. Such is the world today!
ReplyDelete