Happy Earth Day, Everybody!

It's Earth Day! (Don't be confused or alarmed; there are two, and this is not the equinox one.)

There are so many tiny things that we can do:* turn off our lights, have shorter showers, reuse and recycle, take public transport or walk; even if you don't believe in global warming and the catastrophe it threatens to be, we're clearly not a sustainble or environmentally friendly society, and we need to limit our impact on nature. Take a moment to remember how much we rely on the Earth. I've come to realise this particularly through An Ecological History of Humanity, and the generations of humans that have tilled the soil the food, cut down forests for firewood and timber for building, mined iron ore, fished from the oceans, hunted animals, and so on and so forth. Let's try to support the ecosystem that supports us.

So, in honour of the Big Day, I'm posting a poem I wrote waaaay back in year 9 that is based (loosely) on the Gaia theory.

We live in a world that only we care about;
the animals don’t want to smell us, they know we will only bring their end;
the beaches don’t want to suffer our presence, they know we will only contaminate;
the canyons don’t want to acknowledge us, they know we will only wear them down;
the cliffs don’t want us to be there, they know we will only make them fall;
the clouds don’t want to be above us, they know we will only choke them with our smoke;
the deserts don’t want to feel us, they knows we will only take away from them;
the flowers don’t want to think about us, they know we will only uproot them;
the ground doesn’t want is on it, it knows we will only cram it with our waste;
the harbours don’t want us in their boundaries, they know we will only litter their floors;
the icefields don’t want us near them, they know we will only cause their dissolve;
the islands don’t want to comprehend us, they know we will only sink them;
the mountains don’t want to hear us, they know we will only bring discomfort;
the reefs don’t want us sailing them, they know we will only destroy their coral gardens;
the rivers don’t want to observe us, they know we will only drain them dry;
the rocks don’t want to consider us, they know we will only cause their dislodging;
the sea doesn’t want us in it, it knows we will only fill it with filth;
the trees don’t want to see us, they know it can only be bad news;
the valleys don’t was us in them, they know we will only strip them bare;
the volcanoes don’t want to perceive us, they know they can beat us in the end;
the waterfalls don’t want to notice us, they know we will only change their course;
the wetlands don’t want to heed us, they know their discovery will not last secret long;
but the animals will always greet us kindly;
the beaches will always be there for us;
the canyons will always hold out for us;
the cliffs will always stand up for us;
the clouds will always float above us;
the deserts will always lure us;
the flowers will always perk up for us;
the ground will always stay steady for us;
the harbours will always be wide for us;
the icefields will always remain for us;
the mountains will always accept us;
the reefs will always tolerate us;
the rivers will always run for us,
the rocks will always hold fast for us;
the sea will always flow for us;
the trees will always grow to protect us;
the valleys will always be plentiful for us;
the volcanoes will always delight us;
the waterfalls will always fall for us;
the wetlands will always live for us,
because Mother Nature will continue to care for us, so that our species live in harmony.
She will heal all that is wounded,
and produce what has been lost,
and nurture the helpless and gone astray,
and support and bear fruits and labour so that we might live to learn and love.

x
Just a girl

*Those wikiHows can really teach you anything, even How to be a popular girl, how to get rich someday, how to become a hobo,...the list goes on!