I had planned on writing about something specific to gardening but my mind and heart have been filled with what’s happening in LA. It’s nothing short of devastating. When all is lost it is hard to see even a sliver of light at the end of what seems to be a very long, dark tunnel. For now, while we witness this reality unfolding, I submit to you 2 poems that I hope will give some food for thought and then some hopeful comfort. Most importantly and urgently, each of us must do whatever we can to help and assist those impacted.

Climate Change

Kangaroo floods leap across miles

Yankee storms hit with power

Aztec earthquakes sacrifice young lives

Norse volcanoes conjure blinding smoke.

Pacific winds fan relentless fires

Sumatran tsunamis wash countless souls

Bantu droughts parch migrating throats

Peking skies mark mankind’s limit

Polar icebergs diminish penguin turf.

Climate change at full throttle.

– Shobha Vanchiswar

Dark And Light

The light of day

sparkles honest

Cobwebs shimmer

rewards promised

Hope soars

confidence shines

Courage accompanies

mountains to climb

Sunrises occasion

plans anew

Clarity surfaces

Beliefs ring true

Nightfall arrives

slow and sure

Shadows lurk

luring fear

Darkness imposes

time to remember

Review, regret

call to surrender

Sunsets precede

hidden dreads

Anxiety reigns

awake in bed

Reality lies

in plain sight

There’s nothing in the dark

that’s not in the light.

-Shobha Vanchiswar

Some of my watercolors depicting snowscapes – a sense of serenity that we could all use right now. –

(c) 2025 Shobha Vanchiswar

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