March 10, 2011

A Poem for Today

The Church is his Jumbo Pass

 
He’s willing to lie down in front of bulldozers for it and get arrested.

He’ll lead the chant and write the letters, signing his name in sweat and tears.

“If you were charged with being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”

Says the poster in the parish hall.

He can answer yes, sometimes an almost unbearable amount.



Maybe that’s why he and Harry Potter are mates,

Because Harry knows life isn’t about cute little fairies or watching out for toadstools that might give you a bit of a tummy ache,

Life is about fighting the scariest bloody dragon of your worst bloody nightmares.



But anger and protest are so loud

And eclipse in our senses the steady, quietly burning love that is so much greater.

Like the logging company with its profits and its bottom line, we don’t want to hear the opposition or acknowledge the far-seeing truth of the statements on the placards he holds.

‘Think about tomorrow – today is almost over.’



Though five percent ogre he is ninety five percent your greatest ally and friend on earth

Never will you find a person more on your side, or a more positive champion of your efforts and talents, No one more supportive to bring you up when the world pulls you down.

If he hadn’t had the guts to kick our asses every once in a while

Our world would look very differently.

The forest needs its thousand year old trees standing tall

And its grizzly bears among them.

Jumbo Pass has been a battleground between environmentalists and ski resort developers in the Kootenay Region of BC for many years now.

From the Royal BC Museum in Victoria

7 comments:

  1. The first thing that entered my mind was the Circle of Life. I think we should let it naturally exist as much as possible. God created the grizzly bear for a reason.

    ReplyDelete
  2. smiles. i am glad that those that are willing use their voices...we need our trees more than a ski slope....saw a black bear but never a grizzly...

    ReplyDelete
  3. This will take a bit of thinking about before I comment properly.
    You do realise that the key into most poems nowadays hinges on knowledge of the poets life. Just saying is all. :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. I like this juxtaposition of various anecdotes and allusions very much. Powerful. For you so close to some of the last remaining virgin growth stands, it must be particularly poignant to get involved.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks for the comments! I knew when I posted this poem that it may be a bit of a mystery to the reader. It is a plea to protect what was here long before us, environmentally, it is also a very personal poem about someone very important to me standing up for what he believes though it may be unpopular in this day and age.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Good for you to voice your concern/plea/protest for this land!!!! SOMEONE has to fight it!

    We need our beautiful world!

    ReplyDelete

I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks!