Mother Earth clings
to the throat of a chinaberry
praying she has enough hope
to escape the malevolence of humans.
Forced into a dying cocoon
she summons lightening
to ignite the wings of a phoenix
to bring resurrection from
the wreckage of failed dominion.
Lessons never learned; trust never earned
leave acid fingerprints of war and greed
on Mother Earth’s womb while she begs for salvation.
©Susie Clevenger 2022
The chinaberry tree symbolizes the balance between good and evil. It inspires us to find the right balance in life.
It's crime of the worst kind, what we do to our dear mother Gaia.
ReplyDeleteA powerful poem with a message all mankind needs to hear! This is stunning and gorgeous my friend and that song couples it wonderfully!
ReplyDeleteMany powerful people only see the planet in terms of exploitables and resources to be turned to profit and to heck with the consequences.
ReplyDeleteA failed dominion is right, and the problem is non-indigenous humans assuming we had dominion to begin with. I suspect Mother Earth will have the last word. A really strong poem, Susie. So glad you linked it at earthweal.
ReplyDeleteGreed is a form of stupidity, and many humans are terribly greedy. The Earth pays the price. A powerful poem.
ReplyDeletewar and greed... absolutely...and no lessons learned whatsoever!
ReplyDeleteThe opening verse is stunning
ReplyDeleteHappy Sunday
Much💛love
Oddly, the one thing not loosed from Pandora's box -- hope - is the very thing which may save Mother Earth from humanity's curse (qualities of which, according to the myth, sprung from that box). I like to think of hope as that dogged part of life that outlived all the previous mass extinction events and will again, given hope and a spare inch not destroyed by humanity.
ReplyDeleteWe are the worst of children - we don't deserve Mother Earth. Powerful poem Susie.
ReplyDeleteAn indictment of the current pathetic and greed-oriented culture that we have degenerated into, and a striking portrait of that soaring flow of beauty we ignore. Love the metaphor of your opening line, the summoning of lightening, and the immediacy of the sad picture of our failure to be proper stewards of this living miracle of planet.
ReplyDeleteCan only agree with everyone here. We have destroyed the earth from greed and indifference and now we will pay the price.
ReplyDeleteOh yes, we are paying the price .. daily. A gorgeous dark real write, Susie.
ReplyDeleteThat phoenix fire feels much too close.
ReplyDeleteWow, Susie... Just - Wow. I was not expecting such a take... I love how you turned the image into a metaphor.
ReplyDelete~David
We are very poor stewards of this Mother Earth. Technology
ReplyDeletewon't keep up with our waste and destruction and neglect.
..
A beautifully written message of importance.
ReplyDeleteSuch a haunting poem and such powerful imagery, Susie. Sadly true in every word, but you express it beautifully. I found the second stanza particularly striking.
ReplyDeleteMother earth is trying to survive when the odds are against her. Our very existence hangs on the branches of hope.
ReplyDelete