AJ, Art, Artists

My Valentine to Nature

BY Siobhan Mullally on

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Dearest Nature,

I don’t express my love for you enough

But I’m so grateful for all that you are

You do so much for me

 

You provide for me

I appreciate all the gifts you give

The air I breathe, the water I drink, the food I eat

My survival depends on you

 

You are beautiful

You are wild and vast and magnificent

You are a great force and a silent stillness

You fill my soul and give me peace

You ground me

Never failing are your natural cycles of sunrises and sunsets

And phases of the moon in the night sky

And the physical ground beneath my feet

 

You support all life

You do so much for me that I cannot see

To regulate the climate and cycle nutrients and water through the earth

You make my life livable

 

You teach and inspire me

I’ll never get close to knowing everything about you

Nevertheless you continue to teach me lessons every day

Of connectivity, resilience, complexity, and healing

 

You are a wonderful host

You’re hospitable and serving

Even when your residents are destructive at best

You are home

 

I’m sorry for not loving you enough

or at least not protecting you nearly enough

You deserve better than what has been done to you

You deserve all the love we humans can give

 

And I love you for more than just what you do for life on Earth

You are intrinsically valuable in and of yourself

I love you for simply existing

You mean the world to me

Siobhan Mullally (she/her) has an Honours B.E.S. from the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability (SERS) at the University of Waterloo with a minor in English Language and Literature and two diplomas in Environmental Assessment and Ecosystem Restoration and Rehabilitation. For her senior thesis, she travelled to Labrador to study climate change impacts on tundra ecosystems in the Canadian Subarctic. As a budding ecologist, researcher, and writer, she is interested in exploring the intersections between ecology and communication to inspire climate change and help others develop a deeper appreciation for nature. In her free time, she enjoys spending time in nature and getting lost in her favourite novels.