Drought

The soil has dried into dusty particles
that sift and blow with the wind:
there is no water to compress or solidify it.
The grass has no moisture to suck upon
to fortify it with life. It is overpowered
by the tenacity of the creeping weeds
that exist without condensation.
The wails of the dying grass are stifled.

The tall stately trees are shooting out
their roots searching desperately
for life preserving fluids. There are none.
The leaves are withering from malnutrition,
turning brown and clinging despairingly
to their branches, knowing death is near.
The frantic shrieks of the parched trees
are drowned by the clamor of humanity.

Man is oblivious to the pain of nature.
He is insensible to the silent screams
of the grass that softens his footsteps;
he is unconscious of the moaning
of the desiccated trees that caress him with shade.
Nearby are heard the pleasure-filled screams
of children wallowing in their water-filled pools
that drain the aquifer of precious water.

(Note: “Drought” won 2nd Place in 2007 in the Save Our Earth category of the NSFPS annual contest.)