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As the weather’s grown cooler here, I wonder how long the butterflies and bees will be around. Few flowers still remain, mostly what people would consider to be “weeds”, like thistle and a low-growing bush with miniscule white flowers. Pesky to some, these are important food sources for pollinators.
What will the world be like
When there are no more bees, trees, or frogs?
When scorched earth is our reality
And we breathe in choking smog?
We continue to generate scads of plastic waste
Build mansions of questionable taste
Kill off species at a unimaginable pace –
Are we proud we’ve trashed this place?
What awaits our children now?
Are clear blue skies and lakes unicorns?
Are we considering the future for mankind
As even more of us are born?
I asked you to recycle your plastic
And put your cardboard in the nearby bin
You laughed at me for having asked it,
And I knew, sadly, that I would not win.
There just aren’t enough who care
Plenty who talk the talk but won’t walk the walk
And plenty who are aware
And deluding themselves about this epoch:
Glaciers melting, record heat,
Dirty air, algal blooms, CAFO meat,
Tech “reality,”, rainforest burning…
But the world keeps turning.
Right?
For those who refuse to accept
What’s in front of their faces
Soon, differences won’t matter,
Like political affiliations, religions, races…
We’ll be struggling to survive
On the world we’ve taken for granted
And abused, neglected, and plundered
And we’ll reap the terrible harvest we’ve planted –
Because not enough of us care, you see,
About anything other than “me”,
Even though the world must operate as “we”…
And so much depends on the flight of the bee.
My caterpillar friend has completed its metamorphosis and emerged in what I know must be an amazing new form. Unfortunately, I didn’t see when it actually departed the confines of its chrysalis. I suppose that, generally speaking, the likelihood of witnessing that event is low…but I had still hoped.
Instead of marinating in my disappointment, I choose to be glad that the winged creature was able to successfully make that incredible change and leave, to begin life anew. I’ve seen some lovely butterflies that could be that elusive changeling. What do you think?
Leaves crunching underfoot, the filtered quality of light, the goldenrod blooming…all herald Autumn’s arrival. The Canada geese, in particular, have historically been a seasonal bellwether for me, with their cries and formations a clear sign of the end of summer. As a big fan of fall, I welcome it, in all its pumpkin-spiced glory!
Not long ago, I saw an unassuming black and brown caterpillar making its way along a garage door. I knew that wasn’t a good place for it, so I moved it away, into a clump of clover. I didn’t expect to see it again, but it reappeared and hung around…literally.
This morning, I was greeted by the lacy work of an industrious (and tiny) orbweaver spider on a hoop tractor; for scale, the opening in the wire where the web was draped is 2″ by 4″. I marveled at the meticulousness and determination of the spider, an everyday artist. May you behold Nature’s wonder today, too.