Batty

Against the fading sunset light,
small phantoms of the night

circle and dip, bat-blind
to the predicament of humankind.

They are still free to gather and fly,
flickering shadows in the sky,

while we hunker in isolation,
watching the planet’s devastation.

 

Kim M. Russell, 14^th April 2020

My response to earthweal weekly challenge: Connecting Humans, Wildlife and the Corona Virus

Sherry’s prompt this week is a confirmation for some of us and an eye-opener for others. It’s a warning and a plea to the rest of the human race to respect the planet and all the creatures living on it. I like the quote from Jane Goodall, which expresses this so well:

“We have amazing brains…We are capable of love and compassion for each other. Let us also show love and compassion for the animals who are with us on this planet.”

Sherry is right to ask whether humankind will listen, after all, we’ve seen it before that lessons are never learnt for long.

Our challenge is to write about our connection with the natural world and with the wild, our fear, anger, hope, love of animals, domestic and wild, or our frustration at humanity’s slowness to grasp our shared predicament.