Beautiful to know the painted turtle emerges
each spring from a state of suspended animation
entered into at the beginning of winter — 

a testament to the designer who 
seems to have covered every detail
down to the least of his creations —

awakening earlier this year than in years past
which is a sign to some of what’s to come,
warmer temps, a true hell on earth.

No one knows the full effect climate change
is going to have on nature, on humans,
but those who spend their time studying it

seem to agree
it’s not going to be good. 
That the reckoning seems to be coming

sooner than initially projected,
makes us perhaps the last generation 
to live during a time 

when small miracles still happened, 
but not one so big as to still the heart 
of the beast we’ve awakened.