In some ways the revolution in technology has orchestrated the decline in our common sense with regard to our environment. Our concrete structures shield us from the weather, so we are less aware of the dramatic changes taking place; they make us feel invincible, and distance us from reality.
Our numerous sources of entertainment constantly distract and divert us from the plight of wildlife. Clever animation films serve to warp our perception, by humanising wild animals and further weakening our connection with nature. Each generation grows up in a world further removed from reality. Therefore it is not surprising that our collective expectations have become so unrealistic. Many of us spend much of our days in the virtual reality provided by electronic communication.
The poem ‘Concrete Tomb’ tries to highlight the danger of this disconnect with nature. To the author the death of our planet is a tangible sensation. Walking through woodland she senses the absence of wildlife rustlings that were once there. The rabbits and deer and foxes are now absent from the fields behind the house, and she played a part in that disappearance.