Tuesday 22 April 2014

where there is life – there is hope

as we neared the place 
where prayers  
were the last best hope,

the lines became so blurred  
it was hard to tell 
the deserts from the seas . . .

the first warnings  
of global warming:  a far off, 
far-fetched distant memory

and then, a miracle happened:  
one by one humanity 
stopped poisoning

the planet that they shared,
for slowly, it became terrifyingly clear –  
all hope was lost

without a world 
that could support . . . 
life

“While there’s life, there’s hope.” Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman Philosopher 106 BC–43 BC. 

“Where there's hope, there's life.” Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl, 1947.

note:  the prompt from Poetry Jam this week was “Deserts” – physical deserts and metaphorical deserts. 

photo:  Sea Water – W. Bourke

 © 2014 Wendy Bourke  

15 comments:

  1. "where prayers
    were the last best hope,"....love the lines..

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  2. A tragedy - a point of no return unless all are acting in concert! As it is the whole planet is choking slowly! Nicely Wendy!

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  3. luv this poem; AND its perfect for my Earth Day meme which is still open; you can link in HERE
    http://myblog-lunchbreak.blogspot.com/2014/04/1430.html

    much love...

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  4. Such a timely piece, Wendy. Getting everyone to act together to solve this mess we've gotten ourselves into is so very monumental ... I do pray that we can address global warming before it IS too late ...

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  5. Powerful poem & such an important message.

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  6. But hope needs action, too...

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  7. I like the message here. The image of the similarity of sea and desert struck me. Thanks for posting.

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  8. I really like that second stanza, and the title, of course!

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  9. It lines become blurred, nicely written and a powerful message.

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  10. "it was hard to tell the deserts from the seas" This stuck in my mind, how alike they are... maybe I'll go adjust my poem...
    Thanks for sharing!

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  11. what a beautiful turn that would be...to actually make the changes we needed to sustain life on our planet and actually care about its well being...i can hope, that is for sure...smiles.

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  12. Hope is not enough...you have to do something!

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  13. I really hope you are right in this poem. Beautifully written!

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  14. A strong start and a strong ending (as always!). Enjoyable read with a good message.

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  15. You have written a cautionary tale here, Wendy. Lots to think about.

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