Permits and permissions....
Permissions...
Are required only by humans.
The scholars, the researchers,
Those who need to get
Their field work done, their business transacted...
To get the data
That their study requires.
Do the birds, the animals,
The butterflies and insects,
Our feathered and furred fellow-beings on this Earth...
Do they not slip from one region to another,
Across states, countries and continents,
Without a visa or permit?
It's only humankind which trammels itself
With documents,stops, and gates:
We are allowed here,and not allowed there,
As we struggle for access
And find it increasingly difficult
To move around on our own planet.
We snake through serpentine queues,
Fill up forms in triplicate,
Just to enter the territory
Of other human beings
Amongst whom we seem to find ourselves restricted,
Barred, or even banned for life.
Are required only by humans.
The scholars, the researchers,
Those who need to get
Their field work done, their business transacted...
To get the data
That their study requires.
Do the birds, the animals,
The butterflies and insects,
Our feathered and furred fellow-beings on this Earth...
Do they not slip from one region to another,
Across states, countries and continents,
Without a visa or permit?
It's only humankind which trammels itself
With documents,stops, and gates:
We are allowed here,and not allowed there,
As we struggle for access
And find it increasingly difficult
To move around on our own planet.
We snake through serpentine queues,
Fill up forms in triplicate,
Just to enter the territory
Of other human beings
Amongst whom we seem to find ourselves restricted,
Barred, or even banned for life.