My father, a farmer, was respectful of our earth's resources. Replenish what you take, he taught. But some of us consume without replacement as if the earth is infinite in its capacities.
When growth is exponential, we may not see its consequences before it is too late. (Have we already destroyed the balances of nature?) The following 8 x 8 syllable-square poem restates a oft-used math-textbook question -- and reminds us that little time may be left to solve environmental problems.
Square math problem by JoAnne Growney
Quietly the dark creature starts--
it drinks a quart of the water
from our reservoir. Then each day
it gulps twice as much as the day
before. If no one notices
this monster’s thirst until one-fourth
the water’s gone, what time is left
to arrest the vast consumption?
Environmental concerns also are found in these postings: 7 October 2010 and 22 April 2010.
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