dVerse Poets – Poetics – Climate Crisis
Cartoon found at sites.duke.edu
“The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction.” Rachel Carson
Dying For The Fiction
They filled in the wetlands and gave me a house
of dreams filled with death,
and we cut down the trees that gave us life
that we might see the views of the city lights,
in a panic we scorched everything in the
belief that we must perpetuate production,
the very poison that kills all,
while giving happiness in spades of plastic that
smothers reality and makes us long for more
fictions that soothe and inspire
how self murder is so healthy for us,
I awoke this morning to find
my limbs removed,
my lungs cut down
and plastic in my gut,
I am Eco,
I am dying
for the fiction.
©Paul Vincent Cannon
Paul, pvcann.com
parallax 
Your poems are sombre tonight.
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Yes, reflecting on the prompt – it is dire really, but we keep putting off real action. As to the other it was my choice, but by then I was focussed on the decline of democracy.
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Yes it subdues me too. It is unsettling to see hatred lauded and cheered.
I was saddened the other day to see a huge swathe of pine forest gone and replaced with highway in Muchea.
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Yes, and more to come, but no planning for integrated public transport.
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Fantastic, Paul! Even its a sad situation. Michael
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Yes, so sad we have no political will to really strike out and deal with the core issues.
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Money counts, even its only the equivalent to worktime.
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Oh how you made mother earth came to life in this poem Paul
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Thank you Mich much appreciated.
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And, yet we plan another moon landing.
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Oh I know, ghastly expense. I have an unpopular view that volunteerism helps pay for much of this, if we had to pay for absolutely everything we couldn’t afford to keep pushing on in non-essentials. Sigh.
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Your poem reaches out and begs to be not only heard but drawn in as an impetus for action. It’s a killing way of living that shows no abatement. The cartoon is exactly so. No world leadership I’ve seen is taking this seriously. They’re playing at it.
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Yes just playing, it’s a game and they are laughing. Thank you Jade.
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You are very welcome
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This cuts deep, Paul.
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Yes, I tried a lighter one, but it wouldn’t come, so I went with how I was really feeling. Our leaders are foolish.
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Heartfelt words always make an impact! This was really good.
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Thank you so much Punam for your encouraging words.
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You are a wonderful writer, Paul. My pleasure.
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Thank you 🙂
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You are welcome. 😊
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Oh my heart 💜
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Thank you so much for sharing that.
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So very effective — your diction, tone, and overall message provide the opportunity to sit back and wonder about all that we are doing.
“how self murder is so healthy for us” especially does it for me. It’s all for fiction — an idea of our supremacy and dominance which is going to be our doom.
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Wow, thank you Anmol for your encouraging and thoughtful response.
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wow Anmol said it well and the carton is perfect !
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Yes, he sure was encouraging, thank you Kate for adding yours.
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lol can you please correct my spelling above, left out an O, thanks!
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Nope, I’ll have Carlton mid-strength thanks 🙂
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I wondered why you hadn’t picked that up first time … guess you were giving me the benefit of the doubt 😎
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I just didn’t notice the o 🙂
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This one punched me in the gut.
Mission accomplished!
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I’m not sorry, it really is how I feel, I tried a lighter tone, but no, it wouldn’t work, so … thank you for sharing that Sandy.
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I meant that as a compliment, my friend.
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Ah, I was on a bit of a tangent.
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Great irony in this poem. The cartoon was a bonus.
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Yes, I loved the cartoon too, sadly, thank you.
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We all play a role in the problem – well illustrated.
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Yes, we’re in it together. Thank you.
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Most welcome.
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So very tragically apt. This ties in with the theme of a couple of my recent posts too … for if we don’t address our environment and collaborate on ways to fix the problems humans have created, then none of the other issues will matter before long. Excellent poem … would you mind if I re-blog it tomorrow?
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Don’t mind at all, thank you for the comments and thoughts too.
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Thanks Paul!
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Most Welcome Jill
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Have followed the reports of the young activist Greta Thunberg in europe – quite sharp.
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Indeed, she is an inspiration and a tireless young lady with a heart of gold and a voice that is getting louder and stronger. She has motivated young people around the globe to stand up and make themselves heard, for it is their future, their very lives at stake.
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I fear the politicians will dismiss her because she is telling the painful truth.
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The politicians already have, as have other right-wing people. Many times, I’ve heard people say these young people ought not to be skipping school on Fridays, that they are too young to know what they are talking about, etc., etc., etc. But still, I think they are doing a great thing, being far better citizens of this world than most adults.
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How quickly they forget their own protests at that age, sad how a generation has lost its way.
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When mother has finally had enough, and strikes back —we all will pay dearly Paul…
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Yes, I think we are already there, sadly. Thank you Rob for your thoughts.
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You do not know how it goes on. Air travel tourism is still on the rise, the earth is exploited faster than ever before, and everyone involved says: we can not do anything else.
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Oh absolutely – really annoys me that so many say we can’t do anything when we really can.
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I read an article recently: How can we help the environment without being constrained? So how can I continue to happily consume while still keeping an eye on the environment?
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Excellent – this is the root of it.
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Reblogged this on Filosofa's Word and commented:
The single most important thing that should be on everyone’s mind today is the environment, for if we don’t take steps to stop the bleeding, none of the other issues will matter before long. Blogger-friend Paul lives in Western Australia and he writes poetry. Most times, I can even understand his poems, which is saying something, for I am often find it difficult to understand the subtle, hidden messages in most poetry. Last night, I visited Paul’s blog, as I try to do a few times a week, and was stunned by his poem of the day. Please take a minute to read it … it’s short but says an awful lot in a few words. Thank you, Paul, for your generous permission to re-blog “Dying for the Fiction”.
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My pleasure Jill, and I want to thank you for the wonderful compliment and encouragement, and for generously reblogging my poem, I an honoured. It is amazing that we have these connections across the world.
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‘Twas my pleasure, Paul! That one just begged to be shared, for it was so spot on, and so timely. Yes, I am amazed by how close I feel to some of my blogging friends … in some cases they are closer to me, even though a big pond separates us, than people I’ve known for decades!
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Yes, good point, I would agree.
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Reblogged this on The Reluctant Poet.
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Much appreciated 🙂
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Read your poem over at Jill D’s blog. You had me from the very first line…albeit sadly…
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Yes, it is sad, wish it were otherwise – thank you for reading and for the response too.
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Thanks so much for the follow. Look forward to seeing you around! 😀
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Likewise – see in the feed, and thank you 🙂
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Pingback: SoSS #4- 20/07/2019 – Jupiter's Lair
Such a powerful commentary about the predicament we have created, Paul. Awesome work!
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Thank you for the lovely compliment Carol, sadly so, we’ve been completely selfish.
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Well said – a tragic reality put so well – a great challenge to us all
>
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We’re still so slow on this.
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If through our words we can help raise awareness of the planet’s plight, so much the better. We write on.
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I like that, yes, we write on.
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