Ode To Mother Gaia Poem by March Nicks

Our mother cradles us to sooth our pain
She covers us in a hedge of protection
Keeping out the monsters that lie under our beds
Waiting for the right moment as we sleep our dream away

It's her job, her sole purpose
Keeping those she breathed into this world alive
All in the hopes that they will continue
And protect their own children

But as we age, as we grow
We know better

We lay claim to new territory
Build our own metal prisons
With glass observation decks
All in the name of progress

We leave our waste behind
Expecting for someone else
To clean up after us
Just as our mother always has

Our days are filled with finding new ways
To leave our mark, an ever increasing carbon footprint

Too much to do
Too many bills
Too many places to go
Too little time to just be

We don't even notice
How hard it's becoming to breathe
Or that the water doesn't reflect our faces
Or that there are less bees buzzing in our ears

No time to stop and smell the roses
That aren't there

Our phone rings, but we ignore it
If it's important they will leave a message
Who has time to talk on the phone
When innovation is calling?

It rings again and again
As if it is someone trying
Desperately to get our attention
As if they have something to say

It's our mother, calling us
With the news no child wants to hear

She is dying

We plead that there must be something that can be done
But she says it's top late
There's not enough oxygen for her to breathe
Not enough water for her drink

It's too hot for her,
And there will not be enough ice to fill her glass
Her flowers are wilting
Along with her spirit

We cry and beg for more time
But she says it's too late and slips away

As we lay our heads down to dream
We lament, and wonder who will soothe us
Who will protect us
From the monsters that wait under our beds

But no need to worry
Those monsters our mother warned us about
The ones that filled our nightmares
They no longer live under our beds.

We can find them any time
We look in the mirror