Will We Ever Learn? Poem by Alonso Menendez

The night is clear
The air is clean
The sound of water reaching for the shore
A gentle breeze caressing my face
Welcoming me once again
It has been so long
That I almost forgot
What it is to be part of all of this
To feel the presence of God
I am an outsider
Blessed with a glimpse of paradise
Where life is everything
And every death is a need fulfilled
Maintaining the balance
So that it all can continue to thrive
Ask the beasts and they will teach you
The birds of the heavens they will tell you
Witness the wonder and beauty of creation
Feel the embrace from where it all springs
Breathe it in and be filled with the oneness of life

But this is not the whole world
The nightmare approaches from the distance
A disease of concrete and steel
Slowly creeping forward
Whispers of distant screams
The sound of pistons driving forward
Led by paths of asphalt
Bringing the infection
My presence is confirmation
That it may all one day disappear
The hand of God is just not enough
We always want more, more, more
Entranced by a hunger that devours everything
Ever consuming until all that is left
Is the hand of man
Destroying the balance
Imposing our will
Petrifying the world
Creating everything in our own image
How long can we keep pushing our way forward
Before it all pushes back?
How long before we go too far?

I hope that one day we learn from our mistakes
And that it not be too late for something to be done
I pray for this for our children's sake
And for all the generations yet to come.