Kicking Up The Dust

An elephant has much to learn And that takes time, of course, The way to walk, or run and turn Since Nature has her laws. While balance is a wondrous thing, Long tusks get in the way, And even large ears tend to swing Such that they sometimes sway. While limbs are handy day and night, An elephant takes care, Just think of all that weight and height, So hard now to compare. The sun beats down and makes things hot And tempers take their toll, While elephants endure a lot, Sometimes they lose control. While Nature knows such times occur, What will the future hold? Will global warming challenge her, Affecting young and old? Can Man reduce the damage done To slow down or reverse? Is it too late? Has it begun Now turning bad to worse? Denis Martindale. May 2022. The poem is about the magnificent painting Kicking Up The Dust by the UK wildlife artist Stephen Gayford. The poem reflects on how this world's changing climate will affect Nature as a whole. So it's not just about how Mankind will survive rising temperatures as more land erodes into deserts.