“… let the strongest live and the weakest die.”
~ Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species
~ Hylaeus anthracinus
Who has seen the bees with gold-
smudged faces, the only ones
who can make sure the flower
of the naupaka continues to push
its torn half-crown of petals
into the world? Their number
dwindles, and soon the rest of us
in their wake— Who has seen
bees lolling in the waters
of the factory, their hives
hung in tapestries of Blue #1,
Green #3, Yellow #6, and Red #40,
their amber derived from petroleum
streams? The woodland bison closes
its eyes, and the graceful giraffe.
Soon both the banyan and the roses
shrivel, the crops in the field.
Whales and turtles crawl
into a silence of coves.
When this happens,
not even the birds may have
enough strength to fly away.