Julia Collia, a 20-year-old Sebastian resident, sent us a poem she wrote called We Left More Than Footprints. We wanted to share the poem with our readers.
Collia is a member of the Laura Riding Jackson Foundation’s Pole Barn Poets and received a lot of positive feedback about the piece. The photo above was taken at Seagrape Trail Beach.
“This photo was taken at Seagrape Trail Beach Access on August 12, 2021. I found this trash within 20 minutes of searching,” Collia told Sebastian Daily.
We left more than footprints (By Julia Collia)
Trees and grass
Water and sand
Skies above blind eyes
This isn’t our land
She supplies nurture and beauty
yet we continue to disgrace
polluting the overwhelming space
provided for us
Plastic and garbage before our eyes
we do nothing to prevent her from dying
as one day our lives will be capsized
she will stop giving and supplying our needs
we will be down on our knees, asking, “What can we do now?”
She will reply, “It is too late.”
She’s given us the chance to fix our wrongs
and we’ve done nothing but take too long
to realize what we’ve done to this place called home
We are not supposed to use and abuse things
that aren’t ours
she kindly lent it to live and thrive
and we were warned-
When she dies and willows away
we will be on our knees once more, begging her to stay
and she will reiterate, “It is too late.”
Trees and grass
Water and sand
Skies above blind eyes
This isn’t our land
