Nature's Gift Of Green Poem by Paul Murdoch

Unaware of hooks and knives that cut beneath the skin
The guardian of the forest protects all life within.
Hold fast ye barricades of life and fight the evil curse,
That blurs the fragile margins between the gold and rust.

It cares not for our children, it spits on them and us
Relentless and impervious it shatters any trust.
In Socrates we looked for hope, but know it cannot last
The scourge of generations still holds us in its grasp

One day we’ll find the cure-for-all that stared us in the face.
The one that lived among us; escaped the human race.
Encapsulated chlorophyll that hides in every leaf
Will free us from the demons that strangle our belief.

Our kelp-encrusted oceans will lap against our shores
And yield a thousand chances that close a thousand doors.
Against the ones that hold us down, we have to look again;
As every fern and shoot and leaf may hide a cure within.

Dig deep and probe the strands of life that bind us, one and all.
And find the simple answers before our legions fall.
Release us from the silent curse that preys on every soul.
Release us from our grief, and those for whom the bell will toll.

I know we’re undeserving; a chance to live again.
But ask a son or mother, a father or a friend.
As one by one we realise we may next in line;
I hope that nature’s gift of green will buy us some more time.