All Nonfiction
- Bullying
- Books
- Academic
- Author Interviews
- Celebrity interviews
- College Articles
- College Essays
- Educator of the Year
- Heroes
- Interviews
- Memoir
- Personal Experience
- Sports
- Travel & Culture
All Opinions
- Bullying
- Current Events / Politics
- Discrimination
- Drugs / Alcohol / Smoking
- Entertainment / Celebrities
- Environment
- Love / Relationships
- Movies / Music / TV
- Pop Culture / Trends
- School / College
- Social Issues / Civics
- Spirituality / Religion
- Sports / Hobbies
All Hot Topics
- Bullying
- Community Service
- Environment
- Health
- Letters to the Editor
- Pride & Prejudice
- What Matters
- Back
Summer Guide
- Program Links
- Program Reviews
- Back
College Guide
- College Links
- College Reviews
- College Essays
- College Articles
- Back
Ours
The immeasurable pileup;
growing foundation in my dreams and increasing exponentially after the alarm.
Fears and doubts are emitting more than their share.
I brush my teeth amidst rising sea levels,
and fold laundry in rising temperatures.
I make my morning commute along a highway,
the oil engine of my car is leaking, but I don't have the budget for climate action.
Can I blame a slow bureaucracy for the carbon footprint of my laptop?
Is my reusable water bottle an appropriate sacrifice
for the plastic bags accumulating beside my trashcan and along the sidewalks?
1.3 billion people who live in poverty suffer
for the changes I’m unwilling to make.
Someone’s water is rationed, but I prefer almond milk in my latte.
A handful of people switching to a reusable cleaning cloth
can’t undo the environmental ruin of industry.
The clock reads 2:09 pm and I’m celebrating “only three hours left.”
A small voice in my head asks “what if we run out of time?”
What if there’s no tomorrow to start making a change?
I live aware of what should be done. The damage of my, of our actions surrounds us.
It’s in our lungs and beneath our feet.
If sustainability is left up to them,
tomorrow will never look any different. Climate change is our issue.
Similar Articles
JOIN THE DISCUSSION
This article has 0 comments.
By Alexis Vondrak
12th grade, Arrowhead Union High School, WI
With lines from “An Inequitable Truth: Gender and its Inseparable Link to Climate Change” by Laura Goodfield, a Pulitzer Center Reporting Project