Greenhouse Effect Poem

For the poet Grace Nichols


Ocean rises.
Islands go down.

Calypso,
mango, dodo,
plantain,
sugar plantation
islands --
gone.

Palm trees, sea breeze,
white sand,
more kinds of snail
than anyone can count,
except Professor Gould
of Harvard --
gone
under rolling, blue billows.

Where are
the bright shirts,
shining fish,
flower garlands,
star apples,
breadfruits,
taros and
tortoises?

How can we live
without dreams of islands?

I wrote this in 2002. While I might not miss Florida, I would miss the world's islands.