I remember trying to see a crystal-clear ocean
but finding that the vista was obliterated by smog.

I remember expounding on the importance of recycling, and being asked,
"Why bother?"

I remember seeing a gargantuan pile of cardboard boxes stacked next to an incinerator
waiting to be burned and then inhaled by you and me.

I remember the excitement on the moderator's face
when six students joined the Environment Club.

I remember wondering
why no one else walked to and from school.

I remember looking across the harbor to where Boston should have been and instead
being confronted with a smothering blanket of green, thick air.

I remember wondering why people need huge SUVs
to haul them through the adventure of the fast-food drive-thru in exotic suburbia.

I remember wondering why so many people
just didn't care.

I remember that the Earth isn't indestructible.

and

I remember to do my part.