An Election Night Epiphany

By Gabe Minney

There is still time 

I am certain of it, even 

right now, during this very disaster 

there are still rivers flowing 

with mostly-fresh water, still 

there are redwoods and 

birds nesting and chirping in 

still-blue skies, there is still time 

there are still mountains with snow 

and raindrops which kiss the 

barrenness and make it blush with green, 

again, it reminds me of rolling down hills 

as bruised children, do you remember? 

There is still time, really, it is 

still out there, right now, maybe even 

covered with a still morning dew, there 

is still life in the oceans and on the lands 

and our winter days may still be blessed with 

snow and the air might still 

nibble at our cheeks and there 

is still time to count the degrees 

and the rains and tally up the storms- 

be thankful that you can be nervous 

be thankful, we have been allowed to stumble for 

so long, we have been granted amnesty by our stars, 

mother will forgive us for the scars we have 

carved into her, we can still go home, please 

there is still, there is hope, even now 

after the bombs and fires 

there are still bombs and fires, yet we are still 

here, still making them, still not believing them 

we have grown so much and lived so 

little, even still, when there are 

two hundred and fifty years of life 

breathing through the 

eight billion of us every second, I swear, 

there is still time to save it.