POETS UNITED AND THE MATTER OF WATER

Robert Lloyd runs Poets United, a community and blogroll for poets who blog. There are currently 80 of us poets who make up this fast growing community from about 20 countries. Of course many of us take part in other memes and groups, so the community is much larger.

When I started poetry blogging, I had just come out from a long hiatus of poetry writing. Writing is part and parcel of work and I am on my third book of Malay Folklore anthology. But poetry? I thought I had left that part of me buried somewhere - most likely in my daughters' room as I see poetry blooming there - fast and furious.

Now I write about 4 to 5 poems a week, including one pantun in Malay and one very short stanza in French. The prompts help but sites like One Shot Wednesday run by moondustwriter, Pete, Brian and Dustus are open ended and free for all. This makes it slightly more difficult. It is for One Shot Wednesday that I dedicate one poem in three languages - making it a weekly challenge I look forward to.

Back to Poets United, Robert recently gave a shout out for help. The blogroll contains five to six simultaneous blogs. I offered some prompts for the Thursday Think Tank which Robert decided to use. One of my prompt was based on water and a quote from Jacques Cousteau.

"We forget that the water cycle and the life cycle are one"

~Jacques Cousteau

Robert wrote:

Water everywhere and not a drop to drink. I don’t know offhand who said this but it’s a pretty eye opening statement. It makes you think. When you read the word water what comes to mind? What do you think of? Is it that Evian is backwards for naïve? Is it the

deserts without the water of life? It could possibly be the

rain falling from a warm summer sky. I’m sure water makes all of our minds race so we cannot wait to see what “Flows” from your pens and minds this week.

This week’s prompt, quote and photo was provided to us by Nino Taziz. Thank you Nino for an inspiring prompt and helping us out here at Poets United.

If you would like to know more about Nino please visit the blog below:

Poems by Nino Taziz

Thank you Robert.

This is my contribution:

Behold The Last Drop

Imagine this beauty to be

The last drop of water on earth

Dried up are all the seas

Pent up are the clouds above

Dunes across the continents

Deserts stretched to the poles

Humans long forgotten

Encased as fossils below

Along came two aliens

Who studied the world's

history

"There was once water and gardens...

Then it all dried up mysteriously."

For the aliens could not

comprehend

That humans could be so ignorant

As to destroy life's precious element

And thus the life's cycle ends

- self annihilation...

Do read other contributions based on the water prompt here.

This theme is close to heart because I feel a sense of urgency building up on this irreplacable precious resource. Water is trapped in plastic bags that can't decompose. Water consumption is still wasteful in nature. Rivers are polluted by industries plotting to escape detention.

The earth's surface is covered by 71% salt water. The rivers and the ocean are key to our survival and yet -

We continue to live on borrowed water.

C'est la vie!

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For statistics on water resources, check here. Even more thought provoking and relevant to the topic above, have a look at stats on water pollution , water management and more.

I live in a country where water is in abundance, the ancient rain forest and warm seas surround us - yet even I fear this water reality.