To Be Found

Avra Saslow

Abstract
In this poem, my environmental ethic is being Biocentric and not Anthropocentric. One
quote that really exemplifies this value is, Yet I cannot just be found, And claim the,
Earth for my own, I am a part of it, I cannot control the system, I am a part of Earths
systems, A part of the ever-growing community. This quote explains how we are all part
of a community together, and cant say that the Earth revolves around humans. My sense
of place is rootedness; meaning one feels as though they are at home at a certain place. I
talk a lot about how being found means feeling like you have a home. When one is
found, Their place becomes their home.

***

She was found
In a grey mist
On an early morning shoreline
Where exposed and misplaced boulders
Coldly turned their backs
To the lapping liquid

The sea salt that stained her eyes
Was carried by a gust of wind
A wind that rushed through her flittering eyelashes
Crawled around her cold and dry eyes
Crept into her head
And dissipated any thought that could have existed
She wiggled her toes in the colorless sand
Each grain held her rooted to the core of the earth
And the core of her heart
She felt more like she was alive
Than she ever did
Trying to configure the topography of society
With its mechanics and industrial skyscrapers
That shaped the land of humanity

She knew the only way to feel whole
To feel her spirit connected to something important
Would be to return to the state she was in
Before exposed to the toxicity of greed and power
She needed to be reminded
By the course of nature
What power actually controlled
The order of life
And experience the beauty of simplicity
And peace

Because men are mixed up creatures
They became lost long ago
Their desire for power
Overtook their respect for the worlds true treasures
And they tried to find their way back
They tried to work the mechanics and wheels
Of Earths ever spinning systems to their advantage
Like a pinball
Ricocheted from laughing mans hand to laughing mans hand
They dont listen
They dont see the dents in the pinball
They only aim to conquer

But what man does not know
And what she knows
Is that
You cannot find.
You have to be found.

He was found
In the creeks
Where willows only dared to dip their ends
And geese pushed through the cold waters upstream
Murmuring to the nearby trees
They elegantly glided
Slicing through the water as missiles
The sun hovered, hesitant to reach its rays
To the darker shadows
Each shadow whispering to each other
Haunting each other
Keeping dark secrets
From the deeper parts of the stream
The flickering splashes of water
Is the only implication that trout exist
The fish heave their bodies above the water line
Attempt to use speed and agility to catch their meal
And are pushed back down by the scolding hand of gravity
He watches
His ideas of the world have been crushed
And replaced by new dreams
Dreams of a world
That he doesnt have to grapple with to make sense
He was found
Rooted to a world that now makes sense

I was found
In the carved sand stone walls
With the steady rising and sinking of the sun
Peeping its way through cracks and crevices
It lights up the rounded canyon walls with red and orange
Banjos and mandolins and voices echo the canyons
Bouncing from rock to rock
Weaving through the brush and scrub
Dancing shadows on the canyon walls
But
Its the silence of the desert
That is one of the loudest sounds

I have been found
I sprint down the dirt, pebble filled road
To watch the stars and sunset overlap
The gradual descent of the road keeps my legs running
I cant keep them from stopping
I cant keep the serenity from overcoming my body
I cant keep the smile off my face
My legs keep up with the intentions of my soul

Yet I cannot just be found
And claim the Earth for my own
I am a part of it
I cannot control the system
I am a part of Earths systems
A part of the ever-growing community

But many dont realize
That they are a part of a community
And must be found in order to truly be a member

The world is filled
With so much complexity
That its crust may crack with a burst
There is so much reasoning behind everything humanity does
That to stop
To realize
The pure simplicity of a bird
Wrestling with a wiggling worm
And the ease of a rock
Forcing water to diverge around it
Causing foam and a fuss
Within the waters world
Is more incredible
Than any complex technology

When one is found
Their place becomes their home
The foxes and rabbits that creep through the night
The bristling bushes swaying in the wind
The rushing flow of rapids; roaring
This is their place
They are a part of it
They have been found by it

I have been found.





TOTAL: _____/150
10
Complete
execution of the
standard
9
Strong execution
with some room
to improve
8
Meets the
standard
7
Approaching the
standard
5
Below the
standard
0
Standard is not
present in the
paper
Content

Sense of Place ____/10x 3.5____35
______ Do you show a clear definition of the sense of place that most
resonates with you?
______ Did you communicate which category of sense of place
(relationship and/or attachment) best represents your sense of place?

Environmental Ethic____/10 x3.5 _____/35
______ Do you express a clear understanding of your emerging
environmental ethic? This means that you reveal which environmental
ethic(s) is/are most important to you. You may be torn between different
ethics, but you must express how you are grappling with that conflict or
how you resolve it.


Cohesiveness/Integration_____/10x 2.5______/25
______ Do you integrate your sense of place, environmental ethic and/or
understanding of our energy needs to shape and express your perspective?
______ Are you making connections between your ideas for your reader?
______ Do your ideas and paragraphs logically flow in a way that makes
sense?

Descriptive Language & Elements of Nature Writing______/10 x2.5 ___ /25
______Do you use elements of the Grand Style to SHOW your place to the reader?
(at least two of the following are present: metaphor, simile, analogy, alliteration,
assonance,
onomatopoeia, sensory images like sight, taste, touch, sound, smell)

Writing Mechanics
Sentence Craft ___/10
______ Are you writing sentences that are grammatically correct?
______ Is the meaning of your sentences clear and easy to follow?
______ Do you use simple and complex sentences for a varied effect?
______ Did you streamline your writing to be concise and descriptive? (avoid non-
descriptive word choice like, the tree is extremely tall, I really love ice cream)

Proofreading_____/10
______ Are there errors in your paper that spellcheck could catch?
______ Did you carefully read through your paper for proofreading errors
Formatting Guidelines
(Must be met for me to
accept your draft!)
Title: Give your essay a
creative title! Center it at
the top of your essay.
Abstract: Include this
beneath the title
Artist Statement: If you
write a poem or short
story.
Name: Write your name
underneath the title.
Font: Size 12
Word Length: 1,500-3,00
words