To view our Earth is disconcerting;
Dammed place may land up dry as bones,
With overuse and exponential
Expansion of industrial zones.

But eyes high I spy------
Icefloes’ demise from polar seas;
And eaux------ oh those emotive
Haut-photos of Burty-ynsky’s!

Ice-caps dislodging, likely toasted;
Will flood the coastlines, raise the seas;
Less rain on heights, our food-stores threatened –
Our stewardship’s a travesty.

Water-woes ------- we owe to no one
Only ourselves, not autrui;
Ouïe! --- unwilling eyes we open
Edward’s lament-landscapes we see.

Parched Colorado River delta
Flow diverted – raise some herds –
Fish and amphibians find no shelter;
Plundered profits, pain deferred.

Manufactured western suburbs,
Life floats on dwindling aquifers;
Next door the ancient ghostly remnants
Of cultures faltered, disappeared.

And drought------ no doubt about it
We’re drifting to that turn of things.
What clout to save our offspring ?
- Cherish each drop that wetting wrings.

Our leaders opt for obfuscation;
A short-term outlook is obscene –
A final geologic era;
Warm welcome to Anthropocene !

And whoa! -------- those emotive
Views captured by Burtynsky !
Decry -------- and why not try
Avoid our man-made destiny ?

The news from Earth is disconcerting………….