Lament for a Dry Earth

The grass grows green and stiff
The plants turn to brown
Trees crack,
Bleed amber
And beg to die.
The windows stay shut
And we watch the light bend in waves
Through a perspiring glass door.
The lake which teemed with life before
And rose and swirled with the mighty winds
Creeps back into its hole
As the riverbed turns to ash.
Steam rises off the pool
While we try and grab it where it hangs
The perspiration on your brow
Seems thinner than it used to be.
And your breath seems shorter and shorter.
We taste the water now.
We let it swirl in our mouths and enjoy the cool
And the way it spreads.
And we know we many not have it for a while.
We hope the rain will come soon
And deliver us and our world
From shrinking down, quiet and slow
While the world turns to brown
Wheezing,
And heaving
Into a dry and dusty death.

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Jeremy M. Grissom, age 18
2008 Finalist
Raleigh, North Carolina
Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School
Teacher: Rebecca Wenrich-Wheeler