Warily
We should walk upon this
Earth, as the guests
Of this molten mass
We are.
As amnesiatic wayfarers
We wander over this
Small planet,
Forgetting all that
We have been and come from.

We forget we are merely guests,
And ravish the land,
We ravish and rubbish a planet
We can have no part of
For no part exists
As we see it
For anything other than our
Benefit.

But that benefit lies not
In its raping, but
In its understanding.

As a visitor to this planet
Our understanding of ourselves
And our relationship to
This planet as visitors,
Will ensure our visitation
Shall be fruitful,
And we shall benefit from
Being the guests of the earth.

But forgetting our impermanence
Here, forgetting our past,
Forgetting our arrival and not
Remembering our departure,
We see ourselves no longer
As guests of this earth,
But as the masters of the earth.

In our own misguided way
Our lack of understanding
Renders us prisoners
Instead of guests.

Imprisoned by our own
Lack of understanding,
Our own misguided desire.

Here we shall return and remain,
Until we realize the crimes which
Imprison us – until we pay for those crimes;
Until we learn to be guests again,
Until we learn not to rape the earth,
Our fellow guests,
Or ourselves.