Nature at one time beckoned me
In the blowing of its leaves
Yet treated with little respect
Out of neglect will leave you be
Roots that burrow into the earth
Trunks wide like the universe
Branches scale in height and breadth
It spawns an unending curse
A curse that leaves man to his own
Never again to call nature home
Given the chance and man blew it
Would things be different had he known
Now nature’s unmoved by man’s suffering
Man’s woes are his own doing
When on the edge of extinction all’s teetering
Stoic and indifferent, nature will see to man’s ending
I had the pleasure of co-writing this poem with Mike Hauser. After I admitted I hadn’t written anything meaningful in years, he suggested that we try this together and it worked. I worried I’d embarrass myself, but his patience and encouragement reminded me why I missed the poetry community. Thank you, Mike! :)