Gary Lawless: "when the animals"

When the animals come to us

     asking for our help,

     will we know what they are saying?

When the plants speak to us

     in their delicate, beautiful language,

     will we be able to answer them?

When the planet herself

     sings to us in our dreams,

     will we be able to wake ourselves, and act?

 
"when the animals" by Gary Lawless, from First Sight of Land. © Blackberry Books, 1990. Presented here by poet submission.

Art credit: Untitled photograph by Marcus & Kate Westberg posted on A Voice for Elephants, April 25, 2013. From the text: "[At the Living with Elephants Foundation in Botswana] we witnessed firsthand the strong bond between the elephant trio and their human guardians as Doug [Groves] and Jabu stood hand-in-trunk against the setting sun."

Gary Lawless: "Treat Each Bear"

Treat each bear as the last bear.
Each wolf the last, each caribou.
Each track the last track.
Gone spoor, gone scat.
There are no more deertrails,
no more flyways.
Treat each animal as sacred,
each minute our last.
Ghost hooves. Ghost skulls.
Death rattles and
dry bones.
Each bear walking alone
in warm night air.

"Treat Each Bear" by Gary Lawless, from The Dire Elegies: 59 Poets on Endangered Species of North America, edited by Karla Linn Merrifield and Roger M. Weir. © Foothills Publishing, 2006.

Art credit: "Grizzly Bear at Sunset," photograph by © Carl Donohue Photography (originally color).