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      May 14, 2019To Whoever Inherits the EarthAmy Miller

      If it still stands,
      find the bench on the bend
      of Crystal Springs trail with a view
       
      of the cold lake
      and cormorants. We were idiots,
      but we liked this. Also cats on our belly
       
      at night. Taqueria
      windows white with steam.
      A certain shade of lilac that painted
       
      the hills
      for a single week in May.
      We had a saying about the meek,
       
      but the crops
      failed all of us equally,
      the Earth so democratic for a moment.
       
      We kept writing—
      bless you if you’re reading this—
      because to stop would have been death
       
      before death
      before death. To know
      the mistakes we made, with everything,
       
      made a long
      and foolish memoir.
      And what was there to do but write it?
       
      We are
      so young. Tonight
      white blossoms blaze outside the door,
       
      a scent
      like spring has lost
      its mind and pumped out all
       
      the pheromones
      in the arsenal. We are
      so in love as well—this place—
       
      three deer walk
      down the center of the street,
      lit for a moment, then crossing to the dark.

      from Poets Respond

      Amy Miller

      “The United Nations report released a few days ago, predicting that a million plant and animal species will soon face extinction due to human civilization—possibly causing catastrophic harm to our food and water systems—cast a pall over everything this past week. Like many, I’ve had even more thoughts than usual of mass extinctions, famine, and despair, along with a glimmer of hope that a finding this frightening may finally persuade governments to take radical actions to turn the tide. As a writer, I constantly wonder whether writing is worthwhile—I mean, will there be anyone around to read it in a few generations? I keep thinking of the line in William Stafford’s poem ‘Waiting in Line’—‘the chance / to stand on a corner and tell it goodby!’”

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