August 8, 2010

The Elephant

“Why am I besieged on all sides,

My home destroyed, my water scarce,

My food disappearing, my very air poisoned?”

Cried the elephant, bewildered, desperate.

The scream resounded through the world

As loud as the roar of a trapped lion,

Heard by the many species similarly victimized,

And the many others fearing that same fate.

The exception was the one species which

Lately had located itself at the apex of some

Fancied pyramid of life, denying its place as

Simply and beautifully part of the web of life.

This malady of arrogance is new on Earth.

No one knows whether recovery is possible.

How contingent evolution!

How indifferent the Planet!

***