wash away
rain can’t wash away our apathy
newspapers bleed multi-colored ink
plastic bags take flight
coffee-stained Styrofoam cups tumble by
tin-cans weep rusty teardrops
ten-cent bottle-returns lay unredeemed
refuse scars our land
garbage damns our streams
trash curses our seas
debris-islands terrorize our oceans
snow doesn’t hide our wounds for long
floods can’t cleanse our rivers
hurricanes rage but fail too
nothing can wash away our sin
what will become of our paradise?