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.