Why did they ever say America
the beautiful and is it still?
Rivers that no longer flow,
mountainsides torn apart,
forests ravaged and burned,
the sky, sea, and land poisoned,
over-extracting the resources
which were gifted to provide for us.
But the harvest should be sustainable—
wise use, not rape and pillage.
We need to see the aesthetic value
rather than as commodity.
The value of land as recreative—
we need to restore it so it can
be restorative to us again.
Americans have always loved the land,
representing freedom and sense of place.
But manifest destiny got carried away,
promoting inexhaustible supplies
of natural resources. Now
we should look at land as a
communal treasure to be valued,
respectfully harvested and used for
intrinsic purposes for all.
Many scream for pristine preservation,
impossible in a growing, evolving country.
Those who preached multiple use somehow
mutated it into overuse and degradation.
New rules appear, somewhere between
the two extremes, designed to conserve
what we have for the future. For the children,
for the dreamers, for humanity.
All people from all corners
flock here for freedom,
represented in wide open land.
This is common ground,
bringing a divisive nation together.
Rather than counting the number
of things that separate us, find
where can we stand together—
here on the land.
In every land around the world,
people draw their sustenance.
They make their habitats,
they grow from place.
Transplanted they can re-establish,
resettle roots and grow new ones.
Plant yourself in this American soil,
develop community and engage with
others here. Come together to reap
the harvest of hope…
for a better life.
A new movement will be needed—
development equalized with conservation.
Maintaining the integrity of landscapes
for the health of the entire ecosystem.
We need to relearn stewardship.
It is man’s original role. Management
should balance people with the land.
Can we maximize resource
extraction when so many millions
just need a plot to live on?
Land should serve human settlement,
health and human services, along with
recreational and inspirational use.
We need to establish connections
to the land and use it as a platform
for community engagement, investing
in people as well as the earth.
As environmental health reflects that
of the humans, land should be resilient
to a changing climate and demography.
If it is accessible to all people,
terra firma can heal our broken humanity.
Come together on the land to reconnect with nature,
grow the earth, feed the people, let the children play,
share creative skills and celebrate what we have.
The land belongs to everyone.
—
Margie B. Klein has been a nature writer for well over 30 years. With a career in the fields of natural resources protection and environmental education, she has expressed her passion for the environment through poems, essays, articles and stories. She is a fellow with the International League of Conservation Writers and has won the Conservation Education Writing Award from The Wildlife Society. Klein is also a member of the Nevada Poetry Society.
