River flows back into river,
and earth gives back to earth -
the world of the past is fading,
for few can see its worth.

Air gives birth to new life;
from dying flame comes fire.
Hearts and minds become tainted,
and the stakes get higher and higher.

Technology speeds up,
but humanity slows down.
Hatred spreads easily,
to our instincts we are bound.

The present world keeps changing,
yet change won't always cause pain -
sometimes we will lose
and sometimes we will gain.

The future is closer than we realise
but when do we look ahead?
It nears us faster than we believe -
forever farther than we dread.

But river stops flowing back to river,
and earth gives back less to earth -
the life we had is gone,
though all could see its worth.

~Cheli