Changing Leaves
Pearland, TX
2023, Junior, Poetry & Spoken Word
Climate Hero: Elizabeth Wanjiru Wathuti, Green Generation Initiative
I see the fellow trees swaying in the light Kenya breeze
I feel joy progress down my thick trunk
The thought of oxygen being released into this beautiful air we retreat in
The sound of this fine planet’s organisms taking it all in
The idea of Mother Nature cherishing the moment
The touch of other leaves on my branches
Beautiful.
Though, this moment may not last forever
This Earth, our home, is changing
Fires burning entire ecosystems
Temperatures rising higher and higher
Ice melting at the tips of our planet
Trash all over our luscious green habitats
Poisonous gasses in the atmosphere killing us one by one
Even fellow trees disappearing
I despise the day when it’s my turn, and this dying plant kills me, too
But
I see a sign of hope that we’ve been waiting for
I see Elizabeth Wathuti planting a new member of our community right across from me
She keeps moving around the forest, planting
She plants so many new members I lose count
I estimate about 30,000
Wow.
She later comes back bringing more people, smaller people, with her
She plants more new members and shows them to the smaller people
They are amazed and I spot smiles on their faces
Maybe they’ll be like her one day and we can have a continuous full forest
I suppose there is still hope for this dying planet
Who knows what shall happen in the future years
Certainly not me
But
Because of people like Elizabeth, the planet may just live again someday
And we will have that perfect day forever.
Reflection
During this Contest, I have learned how our environment is truly affected by climate change. It was interesting to me to see how climate change has destroyed entire ecosystems. After researching climate change, I found out just how bad of a predicament we are in. Noticing how Elizabeth Wathuti's contributions helped the community of Kenya inspired me to write this poem. Elizabeth’s contributions helped me see that many people are working towards a better future, and that is great news. The process of creating my poem sparked the feeling of hopefulness that we can restore this beautiful planet. My message to viewers of my artwork is that because of people like Elizabeth, we can restore our planet, and that it’s important to aim to make a difference.