Passage
February 7, 2008 by Shirley Allard
In open fields
the grass grows green
The sunlight bounces
off the sheen
of metal roofs
on weathered barns
distorting quaint
New England charms.
Up the hill
the forest falls
The sun pours in
as progress calls
no trees will sway
as windmills spin
the power-packed
New England wind.
New Hampshire’s first major wind farm is scheduled to be built in 2008 within walking distance from my home.
Without change there is no progress but sometimes the price of progress stings. With everything that’s gained something is lost.
You make a good point. In Iowa, there are hundreds of acres of farmland dotted with windmills. They look very stark and out of place. Nevertheless, a beautiful poem. Perhaps you should try to get it published in a regional paper (hint, hint)?
I’ve been asking,”who defines progress?” for a long time. A very touching reminder of what may be lost to gain. - a fan
I think I’d rather see that than a bunch of wires and massive stanchions, but will it become just another conglomerate charging more than it’s worth to line their own pockets?
Thanks Guys,
I’m all for alternative power but from what I understand we will not even reap the benefits of this project.
This really isn’t a time for NIMBY thinking. We are in the middle of a global crisis right now, folks. The problem is that we know it’s bad, we just don’t know how bad, and by the time we find out, it will be too late. It may be too late right now.
In case it’s not obvious, I’m talking about global warming. We don’t know what to do about it for certain, but we have a pretty good idea of what we should not be doing. Hmmm…in this case knowing what not to do does define what we should do.
We need to develop as large a carbon-neutral electrical generating capacity as we can, as fast as we can.
Fifty years from now those windmills will seem part of the quaint and charming rural New England countryside.
It’s a very evocative poem, by the way. Excellent work. Your editorial comment at the end kind of sideswiped attention from it.
Hi norland, You have some very valid points that I can’t argue with. And, although my editorial sideswiped my poem I doubt you would have commented on the poem itself. I am actually quite proud that our little town will be contributing to the future in such a monumental way. I think, like everything else, the politics involved in such a change have tainted the real value of it. Thanks for your comment.