Misty Marsh

Misty marsh alive, humming with activity
Furtively felt rather than seen
Incessant life beneath the still, luke-warm waters

Breeding ground for the wide expenses of the Gulf
Beginning of the life cycle
Links in the chain of life--invisible but everpresent

Brown pelicans amassed on one small isle
Plunging headfirst like dive bombers for their brackish food
Can the fathom the lurking catastrophe

Oil gushing up, exploding, bursting out of the earth
Chaos and confusion
Death comes swiftly

Monumental desecretion
On a scale unknown
Not just for fish and birds

But for humankind
Their lives are shattered
and their livelihood

More tragic than Katrina
For then they only lost their homes
Now it's their environment

Boats left empty at the docks
Louisiana--a sportsman's paradise no more
Shrimp and oyster beds

Left untended
For the oil to overflow
Misery in the marsh land

Barrier islands
Inundated with oily scum
No protection left

Apathy of those in charge
Louisianians--left alone once more
To salvage what they can

Incompetence abounds
No contingency plans have been made
Collusion with forces that oversee

No need to fear global warming
Is it a fact--means nohing now
For the apocalypse has already come

May 27, 2010

Sandra Forman Robert