Melting Memories (Poem)

Earth’s great ice sheets are melting,
Creaking, singing and splitting,
Mixing their ancient potions
With warming, salty oceans.

Like annual rings in trees,
Their annual layers of freeze,
Store the climate disruptions
From volcanic eruptions.

Bubbles trapped inside ice cores
Recall ancient methane stores
And CO2 signatures
Evoke air temperatures.

They are archives of past climes,
Glacial-interglacial times,
Dust variability,
And climate stability.

Their crystalline memories
Hold atmospheric stories,
Recounting tales from the past,
Predicting a dire forecast.

If the Antarctic sheets melt
Huge sea levels will be felt
Drowning low lying places
Destroying cherished spaces.

With 4 degrees of warming
Arctic thaw is alarming,
Wide open water appears,
Not seen in millions of years.

The Sahara desert sand
Could migrate to Europe’s land
And with it, desperate souls,
With full hearts but empty bowls.

Most scientists now agree
Each fraction of a degree
Of extra warming matters
Since extreme weather shatters.

Yet there remains a huge gap
In knowledge of this deathtrap,
And the swift actions needed,
As warnings weren’t heeded.

But winds of change are blowing
And a strong swell is growing
We must harness this great force
And bravely set a new course

To a frozen world that’s fair
And filled with hope not despair,
Where we remember the past
And the climate debts amassed.

Where reconciliation
With every single nation
Enables balanced progress:
Humanity in congress.

Honestly bridging the gaps,
Seeing the value of caps
In reducing emissions
And achieving ambitions.

And when Mother Nature speaks
We’ll listen to what she seeks
Our destinies intertwined
Our common values enshrined.

For her ancient memories
Should remain in a deep freeze
Safely locked away in ice
Too precious to sacrifice.

By Ciara Muldoon
Co-founder of SearchScene.com, the charitable search engine that protects the planet and your privacy while you search the web.

Written 15th May 2021.

This poem was inspired by:

– Noam Chomsky & Robert Pollin’s book, “Climate Crisis And The Global Green New Deal.” (2020)

– Disney’s Frozen 2, which our pre-schooler loves singing along to!