The Museum of Natural History tour
Was full of mystery and wonder that day
As the elementary school's field trip
Was slowly ushered to each display.
The tour guide spoke about the beasts,
Stuffed and mounted behind the glass
And described the way they had lived
For the fascinated, wide-eyed class.
"This is an elephant," the guide said,
"It once roamed the African plains.
They went extinct because of poachers
Despite many conservation campaigns."
The class then moved to the next window
Where a lion stood, regal and strong.
The guide said, "It's hard to believe
But even he didn't last very long."
The class was awed but sadly silent.
Next, they saw a rhino on display.
"I don't know how or why," she said,
"But even this giant was taken away."
The same was true of the giraffe,
The gorilla, the hyena, the bear,
The moose, the elk, the buffalo,
No animals were left anywhere.
The museum was more like a graveyard,
Its wonder was so mired in sorrow.
So many species poached to extinction
By men with no thought for tomorrow.
They finally came to the last display,
Figures of a woman, a child and a man.
The guide said, "This is what ruled here
Before our time on this planet began."
"We sent scouts to find a new home for us
Because we had devastated our planet, too.
They found this world, barely inhabitable,
With just enough resources to start anew."
"We're not really sure what happened here.
We know there was famine, disease and war.
But it's a mystery why not one survived
When they once ruled from shore to shore."
"There was an artist in their 15th century,
A man named Leonardo Da Vinci, who said,
'All will be hunted down. All destroyed.'
What filled his heart with such awful dread?"
"We also discovered a poem, or a prophecy,
By a man named Seattle, an Indian chief.
It seemed he saw his conquerer's future
When he wrote it through tears of grief."
"He asked, 'What is man without the beasts?'
And he said all living things are connected
But there were too many who did not believe
So Chief Seattle's wise words were rejected."
"He warned them of 'a great loneliness of spirit'
When men see nature not as a friend but a rival.
And a world without their fellow creatures marked
'The end of living and the beginning of survival.' "
"He told them man did not weave the web of life.
And in all its complexity, he's merely a strand.
So in destroying the web, they destroyed themselves
Which is why not one was left upon this land."
"We surely would have met the very same fate
If we had not discovered this new place to live.
So let us all learn from our past, and from theirs,
And always try to take much less than we give."
Author notes
"Nothing will be left. Nothing on the land. Nothing in the air. Nothing in the sea. All will be hunted down. All destroyed." - Leonardo Da Vinci (1452 - 1519)
In a list
A contest entry
- Animal by Thoughts-of-Soloman.
1800 points, ended September 23, 2008, 24 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 20 of 20
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Superb plus
Wow, reminds me of Rachel Carson's 'Silent Spring'.
A very fine write indeed. Imagery; rhythm and rhyme are just fine. Thanks for sharing. I thought it was Sealth, rather than Seattle. Anyway, many wouldn't know that, so here's a Google Link, for those who might like more information on Chief Sealth:
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=RNWO,RNWO:2008-24,RNWO:en&q=%3CChief+Sealth%3E -
hmm...this is a very thought provoking poem. i really enjoyed it. i haven't had anything strike the cord this one did in a long time, but then again your writing usually does that. once again you have amazed me with your words and made me really think about things. keep up the good work.
sharonlynn -
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Thanks, Sharon. Great to hear from you. Congratulations on the birth of your son. He won the cosmic lottery getting you for a mom.
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As usual, you strike a chord that resonates with amazing insight and well thought-out verse.
"So let us all learn from our past, and theirs,
And always try to take much less than we give"..that is it in a nutshell.
Hope you are doing well...suzy
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Thanks, Suzy. I hope all is well with you, too. Please say hi to Amanda for me and tell her I still remember her "happy hops" and the way she said my name. ("Mark Rickerbeeeeeeeeeee!")
The kung fu school moved to 1600 Magnolia Blvd. and it's a lot more temple-like than the old one. High, arched wood ceiling, lanterns and statues everywhere, lots more floor space. I miss my old friends like you and Amanda, though. This world pulls everyone in different directions but the constantly revolving chorus of new faces is hard for me to handle when all I really want is to build a community of loved ones that will stay close by forever.
Best wishes my friend
Mark
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That is a scary reality, made think of 2012. How uncivilized is the civilization we live now.
Your words came with a very strong impact Mark.
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A most hauntingly thought provoking write, WELL DONE TO YOU!
What better to haunt people with, than such a reminder to wake up to the position man stands in. The references to sayings from certain representatives of wisdom, which point to the connectedness of all things in the very 'substance' of that which we are entirely dependant on.
Hopefully our own evolvement in awareness can become the 'New Planet' while still here on this one. Some very healthy observations here to help pave the way.
The 'doom and gloom' content? ... Well may it continue to haunt us into remembrance in such times we might be given the opportunity to make a difference, either directly in our attitudes or simply by support in other ways.
Thank you so much for putting this to us.
Sol
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Wow. Just wow. I don't know just what to say.
Obviously you've got it right on - (with cowees, porkees,
and a few others as exceptios@@)
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Outstanding POEM
In the web of life
so thin so strong
lies the life of men
some care some wrong
When you write I'm amazed at your skill. You capture in a poem the reality and the chill of broken policies, practices, and magical charms and you weave it into webs where your words become so strong.
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Mark,
I had chills reading this once I realized what was happening. The words in this poem ring so true. we have to learn to respect our land, and quickly. You're words are so sharp, they piercd my heart. The resources that we have that are renewable now, may not be so in the future.
Brilliant.
Criss
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Thanks, Criss.
I agree. We're hurtling toward a very uncertain future, and there are many in this world who will take and take until there's nothing left, such as Japan and Norway and their sidestepping of whaling bans under the guise of "scientific research", the Chinese and all their primitive potions (mostly aphrodisiacs) made from ivory, etc.
Did you know that in Taiwan they sell "tiger penis soup" under the table for up to $1,000.00 a bowl so that dried up old men can (they think) get an erection again. It's downright primitive; the same principal as cannibalism. i.e., if one eats his enemy's brain, he absorbs his wisdom. If he eats his heart, he absorbs his courage.
For all their "ancient wisdom", the Chinese and Japanese people are stuck in the dark ages in many ways. Poachers are also killing black bears in America. They cut out their gall bladders and sell them for big bucks to - surprise surprise - Chinese herb shops around the U.S.
Of course, we all know the rainforests are going up in smoke and aside from all the life forms there, many undiscovered, so are potential cures for diseases that are decimating human life now, and will in the future. In one area of rainforest recently, researchers found 250 new kinds of insects, mostly butterflies, that had never been seen before, just before that area was leveled. And most people still don't know that the easiest way for all of us to end the rainforest destruction is to stop eating red meat. The news will never tell us that because the meat lobby is too strong.
Sorry for the rant but this is one subject that really gets me going, obviously.
Hope you're doing well,
Mark
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... maybe someone should tell those in Taiwan who are eating tiger penis soup... about Viagra
I actually just read about the gallbladder thing.. I think that is awfully strange. I agree that there are so many things that we could do to preserve our land, but it has to be a collective effort.
thank you for sharing your knowledge with me. I feel like knowing you makes me (appear) smarter.
Criss
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this began innocently enough and then WHAM!! you got me, and I was immediately where you wanted me to be...I am a nature child, child of the earth and sea and the sky...I have never taken my world for granted, and it seems I have someone here with me. This is a powerful and moving poem. Love, Lane
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You should really take a foray into science fiction writing, I think that you would really love it. This poem is similar to sci fi stories like "Dark they Were and Golden Eyed" in its style.
It's always funny to me how people from all backgrounds and ideas always come to the same conclusion when they think about existence, that everything is connected.
Anywho, good write,
Steve
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Hi Mark
I just read two very extraordinary poems back to back,
this one Mark, and http://allpoetry.com/poem/4595723.
First time in five years on the site.
I guess the muses are back from their summer vacation!
Very unique POV for this!
Great, a must read by all!
John-Nevada
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Hey John,
The link you gave me appears to be for my poem, not the other one. Please let me know the correct link if you have a second. Thanks for stopping by.
Mark
P.S. You look a lot like Obama. Has anyone ever told you that? lol
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Brilliant
Beautifully rhymed, a joy to read for the flow if not for the subject matter. It just makes me smile when folks talk of saving the planet. The earth was here millions of years before us and will certainly be here for millions of years to come. It has survived ice ages, continental shifts, mega volcanic activity and meteor impacts, it's our own long term survival we need to worry about!
Best of luck in the contest
Kat
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Kat,
That's for sure. The earth will survive us as it has everything else. It's just a shame to see such diversity - whether designed by God or millions of years of evolution - be decimated in such a short time, as we are seeing now.
Hey, aren't I just a cheerful SOB? lol Hope you're having a great weekend.
Mark
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Oh my gosh!! How profound for a Sunday morning... and I hadn't even finished my coffee yet!! BRILLIANT work as usual.
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Thanks, Bec. I finally got that package off. Please let me know when it arrives. I hope you and the kids enjoy it!
Mark
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