I had not seen this artwork by Michael Whelan before. In the explanation for the painting, he says that he sees manmade structures as being part of nature, because we are part of nature.
My immediate impression on seeing the painting was a different one … but then again, it probably stems from the fact that I see humanity as a blight on nature 🙂 We take, destroy, consume, but don’t do a lot to give back or to replenish. So to me, our structures are a sign of humanity’s ravages on the earth and my visions of the future are of a land scrubbed of humanity 😛
My poem kind of reflects those sentiments …
Sentinel
by Fahim FarookTumbleweeds cartwheel by,
Eagles soar lazily in the azure sky,
Grasslands stretch as far as the eye sees,
The sentinel stands guard without cease.Surrounded by verdant greenery lush,
Adorned by vines and decaying brush,
No sign of its creators yet remain,
The land wiped clean of their acrid stain.Plains carpeted by grass,
Trees adorning the land mass,
No sign of an intruder,
Except the sentinel, the brooder.Silent and alone there it stands,
Awaiting the return of its creators to the lands,
Waiting, waiting, waiting for eons,
Awaiting masters to command their peons.Mayhap one day its wait will be over,
Its masters will tromp back over the clover,
But will the end of the wait be a good thing,
Given the destruction their return would bring?
