Reflection

I was inspired to write this piece after going on a walk one morning and hearing, well… nothing. No birds, none at all. It was eerie, in a way—nothing stirred, nothing sang, and the silence of it all made me think of a world where such nihility ran rampant, where nothing of nature remained. Sometimes, I think it can be difficult to grasp the enormity of climate change, to understand the extent to which it impacts our lives; but time and distance shouldn’t make us complacent. Rising sea levels, heat waves, wildfires, extinctions—I wanted to address all of these issues in a way that would depict the road we’re heading down, both as a global community and as individuals. As such, I would say that this poem is part provocation and part reflection; a tribute to life’s often overlooked features. For me, it is a reflection of climate change in my life. There are allusions to birds and words and wintry celebrations because they are the things I see disappearing—whether it’s now or soon. Through poetry, I wanted to show how these disappearances would affect us: no more birds, Thanksgiving turkey, the phrase 'cluck my tongue'. No more hot chocolate. No more winter. However, I also wanted to show that there’s still time for change. Writing this piece made me truly reflect on my actions: what was I doing to tackle this issue? Could I be doing more? The answer is yes. After all, even small changes make a difference.