Analysis of When Closing our eyes is all that we have
We stand on an open grave. No, it's not a metaphor.
we've stood here for thousands of years-
Looking into the distance and wondering how we can do better,
all while poisoning the sweet dew that intends to be consumed.
it's not a debt nor a hate, not a laugh, not a debate.
This place we've marked from the beginning has a meaning-
From the time we're born to the second that we die,
it grows in us like weeds.
It feeds like us, feels like us, and hurts like us-
like cherry blossoms and plumerias with wide eyes-
tumbleweeds across great plains, and stars amongst the many galactic skies.
As youth becomes us we breathe in the fresh air. We dance amongst the waters edge,
half flight running cold and hitting the sea.
Once we get older we ignore the significance we once took in with memory.
A child is brought into this world, and their mother tells them to be a kind servant- not just to themselves, but to the land.
I once to knew the message- but ignored the demand.
I grew up a bastard. I littered, slandered, and spat.
All while I focused on building and innovating, I forgot to stop and listen to the mountains whisper, the cardinals warning, and the oil-filled pelican.
As a young adult I wake up to my long awaited resurrection.
I look around and see that the world is on fire-
Bright orange and full of dust.
The seas are rising, the vegetables are wilting, the beauty is vanishing, and yet the thing I fear most is the people.
We've been on this path for far too long. We've closed our minds and filled them with harmful chemicals.
What words can I speak to reverse the damage? What action must I take to extinguish the fire?
Red Hill is a common neighbor, clean air is a foreign treasure.
How long must we close our eyes to see what's really here?
How long until we acknowledge that the planet is in despair?
Now is the only time we have to take the action we need-
To close our eyes and remember what was there.
As students, teachers, politicians....as humanity-
We have the power,
to save the planet before closing our eyes and remembering is all that we have left.
Scheme | XXAXXXXXXBBXCC DDXEEAXX XAAXFXFCAX |
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Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11111011110100 11111011 10010100100111110 111000111011101 11011011011001 1111100101010 101111010111 110111 11111110111 1101001111 1011101010100101 1101111001111010101 1110101001 111101010010011101100 01110111011011110110111011101 1111010101001 1110101101001 111101100010101110101010100100100011100 10101111111010010 1101011011110 1100111 011100100110010110001011111010 11111111111101011110100 111111010101101111010010 1110101011101010 11111101111101 1101101010101001 110101111101011 111010010111 1101010100 11010 11010011010100100111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic octameter |
Characters | 2,081 |
Words | 415 |
Sentences | 27 |
Stanzas | 3 |
Stanza Lengths | 14, 8, 10 |
Lines Amount | 32 |
Letters per line (avg) | 51 |
Words per line (avg) | 12 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 540 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 129 |
About this poem
I recited this poem at a gubernatorial candidate pledge on earth day. It's a touching poem exposing the realities of ignorance and how we need to protect our earth before remembering it is all that we have left.
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Written on April 10, 2022
Submitted by haydena on April 30, 2022
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 2:07 min read
- 57 Views
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"When Closing our eyes is all that we have" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/126681/when-closing-our-eyes-is-all-that-we-have>.
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