Either All Or Neither None Poem by Bernedita Rosinha Pinto

God made nine planets
and held one of them in His hands
He said to men - 'This earth is for you',
live on it and make it your home,
live with every one around you
respect each others existence and peace''
The caterpillar asked the tadpole
- What will you eat for breakfast -
the reply was - at least, not oatmeal and bread;
the honeybee asked the flower -
Can I borrow your nectar forever?
the flower said - if I oblige you, what of me?
the honeycomb sat silently like a thief
knowing it was made from the stolen nectar
although very very sweet was she;
the sunset asked the fish-
do you ever drink tea
the fish replied - the sea water is my beverage
in the mornings and evenings, too;
the herbivorous animals kept eating grass
the carnivores tried eating hay but failed
they kept hunting and preying upon
those who were weaker than them;
looking at man's mind and wit
everyone wanted a re-adjustment in time,
So they decided to ask God their choices of life
God said to them - birth and death is all
within my power and will
but thy shelter, thy food, thy clothing
are the options you must choose and capture.
Man built four walls and called it a home
while clouds in the skies, fishes in the waters,
animals and birds in forests and jungles
trees and mountains, seas and oceans
rivulets and ridges, stars and moonlight
sunshine and sunset, all in the circumference
of this earth kept moving in togetherness,
in harmony of existence and dynamism
as God told man- ''on this planet called earth,
one must survive with endurance and love
for the other to go on,
so it is either all or neither none
that have to turn on the axis
and permit life to oscillate generations
so that every species is known by its identity,
either all, or neither none, the voice echoed
and neither men nor the universe forgot.