What we still take for granted

· by · in dVerse, poetry. ·

Today as dawn just had broken
I walked through the woods
on gold covered paths
to the sound of tiring leaves
trembling in wind.

A faint drizzle of rain
wets my hair and covers my face
and I wonder why
I always take nature for granted
as our hunger and greed
develops wood into timber
and synthesise breeze
in my headphones,
cover nature with tarmac and lawns,
straightening paths into roads.

When mountains is valued
not for their view
but their ore,
the wealth we can mine
and transform into guns
for the wars we still have to fight.
and we can’t see the sea
without seeing the worth of the oil
we can suck from below,
when we cannot see beauty
without setting a profit
as paid for the view.

When the last meadow is seen
just as a golf-course to be,
remember to never take nature
for granted and stop
by the woods
by the sea,
by the mountains and streams
and breathe for a while.

Today it is dVerse Open Link at dVerse hosted by Lilian with the option to also join the Live session on Saturday at 4 PM CET.

October 22, 2026

33 responses to “What we still take for granted”

  1. Beautiful reflection on the value of nature and the misuse of so many humans of this beautiful land and sea. Am reminded of the videos of Trump’s bulldozers uprooting 400+ mature and beautiful trees for HIS golfcourse….and going against the judge’s ruling in the process. Sad and despicable. He is evil personified.
    And oh my yes….how we marvelled at the natural beauty of Iceland, Greenland, and Canada on these past travels.

  2. Humans do take a lot for granted, Björn, so it’s refreshing when we read about those who not only love but also respect nature. I know how much you love walking through woods and I, as a lover of trees, enjoy it too. I love the way you captured the sound of woodland in the ‘tiring leaves trembling in wind’ and I could feel the ‘faint drizzle of rain’ – well, I have in reality as we’ve had rain every day for about a week! Sadly, there is a lot of building going on in our green areas as developers ‘cover nature with tarmac and lawns, straightening paths into roads’. And don’t get me started on oil and gas!

  3. This is gorgeously rendered, Bjorn! I especially resonate with; “when we cannot see beauty without setting a profit as paid for the view.” 💙💙

  8. The line about not being able to see beauty without attaching a profit to the view hits deeply. And the part “When mountains is valued not for their view…” … ahh… that is something of value and making me think about how shrewdly we have been destroying the beautiful things.

  9. Soothing verses, with just the gentlest touch of Frost in an eloquent verse. You provided inspiration for me to write a short haibun stating what your poem is saying in another way….

  10. Posted comment before editing…your poem just fit the surroundings and ethos of my new project as you might see…maybe one day for a poetry workshop….?!

  13. As a human being, I often find myself taking things for granted too. The smell or the sound of rain or the fact that I go to sleep in my bed while listening to the wind and the breath of my loved one .

    Such a great poem.

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