An alien came down to Earth last week,

and plugged into a local ATM,

before too long he'd learned enough to speak,

his loud, metallic voice boomed out: "AHEM!

"Attention Earthlings, please attune your ears,

I've come from far across the Milky Way,

we've watched you for a hundred million years,

but never worried - not until today.

"We watched you split the atom - wondered why,

we laughed at all your crude technology,

and then we saw the cloud rise in the sky,

the first time ever, in our Galaxy.

"And even then we left you all alone,

expecting you to build, and grow and learn,

you taught yourself to heal, compute and clone,

but never looked at all the air you burn.

"You're planet's doomed - and you don't seem to care,

I didn't come to punish you - not I,

but on behalf of all of us out there,

I'd like to wish you all a fond goodbye!"

MORE OF MY ENVIRONMENT POEMS