Celebrate saving the less charismatic
Write odes to plankton, snail and flies,
Our love of birds and mammals may be automatic,
But we struggle to value lichen in our lives.
It’s harder to sing of fungi than of tigers,
Hard to remember the worm in the earth,
Diversity means algae as much as flowers
So call me moss and call me dirt.
I have never been charismatic mega-fauna,
Brother mollusk thankless keeps the water clear,
Save the whales, the turtles, the panda,
But bless and bring sister microorganisms here.
Let me prove my unlovable worth,
Call me moss. Call me dirt.
Orla ní Dhúill 