Motherlands Vanishing
Grasslands
Prairies
An oasis that we only really tend to associate with Africa
Tall, long, yellow grass that towers over my head
This is Texas
It is my home
As I walk through the rows of hexagonal, almost psychedelic sprouts of grass
I feel centered
I think about the history of the people and wildlife that have lived here
I wonder what these trees have seen
An ocean, a life source for the Wichita and Comanche
A playground for dinosaurs that have left us hints for years to come.
This valley springs with life from the bugs crawling out of the ground to the lichen on the trees
There is evidence of renewal
Evidence of rebirth
Less than 4% of prairies are left in Texas
An ecosystem that was once so widespread
We must protect Texas
This is our home
And I will fight for it
Whether that be picking up litter or advocating for our rights on the political battleground
We cannot give up
Because this is our home
We take care of each other
We need to leave our convenient comfort zones and get out into our world here
It is easy to give up when all you see is concrete and capitalism
But the more I visit the many different places and ecosystems around this state
The more I realize what we are fighting for
When I meet people who take care of those around them even though they are at their worst, I realize what we are fighting for.
Texas is not our enemy but our home
And that is not something I’m ready to just give up on