The Coming Times
Florida Sinks
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To Top of Page Copyright 2005 Theresa Law All Rights Reserved |
- And I am in Florida, USA. My home
I see that water is seeping up through the lawns of suburban Florida
No need to water the lawn!
The water seeps up from underground
Florida is gradually sinking. Inch by inch she is sinking into the Atlantic Ocean
And what do the people do, dear?
They are in complete denial
Confident that they can work around and over and through any problem presented
to them
Architects and engineers are called upon
Water is drained into ever more retention ponds
And there are more and more of these retention ponds all across suburban Florida
Soil is hauled in
And people pour layer upon layer of soil upon their lawn
And then replant the lawns on top of this new soil
And the newer houses built incorporate all sorts of features to protect from flooding
The architects are able to come up with many suggestions and features
And the builders listen to them
And continue building new homes across Florida
And the people continue moving to Florida to live
And Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the Florida Chamber of Commerce is concerned
For the tourist industry on which Florida is so dependant is being hurt
For the beaches are being swallowed up
The ocean now reaches right up to the hotels’ doors
There is no beach
And engineers and other specialists are called in
And the government follows their suggestion and dredge up sand
And ‘create’ beaches so that the tourists and their money continue to flow into
Florida
And this seems to work; all of the techniques and strategies
That are implemented are helping
They are helping
And so the builders continue building
New homes in new suburban subdivisions
New hotels along the beaches
And new residents continue moving to Florida
And the tourists with their money continue pouring into Florida
And yes the government and the business professionals are proud of themselves
Yes, they can approach these problems
And yes they can find solutions
And yes, we can continue building and continue growing
And continue to make money
Yes we can
And Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the hurricanes sweep across Florida
And Florida braces itself for them
And then courageously rebuilds and repairs the damage wrought
We can handle this; yes we can
And there is a sense of camaraderie among the people
Yes, we are in this together
And yes, we’ve survived hurricanes before
And we’ll survive hurricanes again
And it’s funny how the hurricanes continue hitting the same area
The Florida Panhandle for example seems to be a favorite target
One Panhandle resident; after having survived 3 hurricanes
Is quoted in the news as saying, “It’s hard not to take it personally”
And yes, the residents who keep getting hit are now getting weary
And the staunch determination that they had initially shown begins to falter
Perhaps we should move
And a few people do, but most stay
They are in denial
We’re tough, they say
Besides every place has its problems, they say
This is my home and I’m never leaving it, they say
And Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the hurricanes continue to batter Florida
The hurricanes come and the hurricanes go
And the people now have the drill down pat
Yes you get your gas tank filled
Yes you get plenty of bottled water
Yes you get plenty of cash on hand
For the Automated Teller Machines won’t work
And the stores will not be able to accept your credit card
And you will not be able to buy what you need
So yes do have plenty of cash on hand
And the people know the drill
They are quite proud actually of their expertise
Their growing expertise at facing and coping with these hurricanes
For with each new hurricane; the residents learn something new
Yes we buy plywood and board up our windows
And now we already have the plywood in our garages
And with the next hurricane
We’ll have all the plywood and the tools already on hand
We know how to do it now
Yes we are learning
But the people grow weary of days and weeks without electricity
And without running water
Can you imagine! We had to go three weeks without running water!
And those who can afford it buy backup generators
So they don’t have to endure such inconveniences
And Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the hurricanes continue to batter Florida
And now the ocean water is past the hotels’ front doors
And has moved into the hotels’ lobbies
And the hotel managers grow increasingly distressed
No the tourists will not put up with this. No they will not
And now the water creeps up from underneath the ground
Up through the lawns across suburban Florida
The water creeps up inch by inch
Despite all the retention ponds that have been built
Despite having added all these layers of soil
And planting their lawns on top of them
The water creeps up inch by inch from underneath the ground
The ocean water sweeps in feet by feet ever closer towards the towns
And the hurricanes continue to batter Florida
And this occurs over the span of decades
And the people adjust; the people adjust
The government adjusts
The Chambers of Commerce do what they can
But it is becoming increasingly wearisome
It seems that more and more and more is required each year
To maintain a normal life
And more and more and more is required each year
To maintain beachfront property
And it seems that more and more and more damage is incurred each year
By the relentless and ever increasing number of hurricanes
Why they are now an accepted fact of life. It has become the norm
The communities know what to do
The people know where the shelters are
And know what to bring with them to the shelters
And yes the spirit of camaraderie continues
We’re in this together, they say
Hang tough, they say
Things will turn around, they say, they always do
But they don’t
They don’t
They don’t
The hurricanes return year after year after year
A few more each year
A bit more severe each year
And the water continues to creep up
And the houses continue to flood
And now unsanitary health conditions are introduced
And the architects and other professionals are called in
And yes they are listened to
And the communities and the people learn what to do
And what not to do
Regarding all this standing water about them
And the years go by
And the decades go by
And the decades go by
- And Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the hurricanes continue to batter Florida
And the people forget that it had not always been this way
That their lives had not always been consumed by their focus on the weather
That in fact that climate had been what had drawn the mass exodus to Florida in the
first place
And the people grow weary
And they think of moving out
Moving out of state
But where would they move to?
Every place has its own set of problems
Besides who would buy their house?
Why the family’s wealth is tied up into their real estate
They cannot afford to sell at a loss
No they cannot
They’ll have to wait till things turn around again
And consider selling then
But things do not turn around
No they do not
On the contrary
Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the hurricanes continue to batter Florida
And the state is feeling besieged
And yes the tourist industry has been hurt
Despite the chambers of commerce best efforts
For the media displays footage of the hurricanes
And their devastating effects for the whole world to see
And yes, in some areas defeat has to be admitted
No, we can no longer maintain this beachfront. It is just not possible
The ocean has crept in too close and too high
There is no longer any beach
And without the beach, there are no tourists
And without the tourists there is no money
And the shopkeepers have no choice
They have no customers
They are forced to close down their shops
They have no choice
And towns that had been dedicated to the tourist industry
It seems overnight are vacated
The hotels emptied and abandoned
The shops emptied and abandoned
The people who had worked in the hotels and in the shops
Must move elsewhere to seek employment
Must start their lives again elsewhere
And the houses themselves are left emptied and abandoned
And now, year by year, decade by decade
Tourist town after tourist town
Is transformed into ghost town after ghost town
The people gone
The structures remain standing
Flooded but standing
Vacant and abandoned
And Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the hurricanes continue to batter Florida
And the people grow ever more weary
And now they no longer have a choice
Why they are forced to evacuate!
Another hurricane comes
And the government forces the residents to evacuate
It is a mandatory evacuation
And at first the order to remain away from the area is temporary
Until we have the downed power lines rebuilt
Until the waters have receded
Until it is safe again
And at first; after a while, it is safe again
And the residents are able to return to their homes
To their devastated homes
Those that are still standing are flooded with water and with mud
It is disgusting
And as the years go by
It takes longer for the government to allow the residents to return home
Until finally some towns are declared officially unsafe to live in
The government cordons off the town
The water is 2 feet deep
There are too many downed power lines
The conditions are unsanitary
And they show no signs of improving
We cannot rebuild this town
We’re sorry but you will have to move
You will have to find a new home elsewhere
You will have to start your life again elsewhere
And as the years go by and as the decades go by
More and more of these residential towns are officially declared uninhabitable
And it is actually against the law to try to return to them
For it is unsafe; it is unsafe; it is unsafe
And these residential towns are residential towns no longer
But ghost towns
Vacant and abandoned
And Florida continues to sink inch by inch by inch into the Atlantic Ocean
And the hurricanes continue to batter Florida
And the coastline of Florida changes
Each year, the cartographers redraw the map of Florida
The satellite pictures give them the information they need
And yes, it is quite evident
Florida is shrinking
Both the eastern and western coastlines have moved inwards
Florida is more narrow
The southern tip of Florida has gone under water
Florida is shorter
And there is a sadness
There is a grieving
Yes, there is a sense of loss
And as the mass exodus into Florida had occurred
Oh how many decade ago was it
So now does the mass exodus out of Florida begins
For it is too sad now
It is sad in Florida
And now each new hurricane is not greeted
With courage and optimism and a can-do attitude by the people
No, not at all
Now each new hurricane is greeted
With a sense of defeat, of hopelessness, and yes fatigue
And slowly but surely the people move out of Florida
First it was the people who were forced to move out
Due to the loss of jobs by the loss of the tourist industry
Then it was the people who were forced to move out
Due to their towns having become and being officially declared uninhabitable
And now people voluntarily leave Florida
Of their own free will and initiative they leave
For they are tired
Truly they do not have the stomach to face another hurricane season
Truly they are weary of the constant flooding
The intermittent but ever increasing power outages
But most of all, it is the loss of their neighbors
That drives them away
For the sight of the ghost towns all around them
Is just too depressing
It depresses the people
And they are defeated
And in defeat they leave
They simply abandon their homes
No, no one will buy them
The family’s wealth is abandoned
And they move to where they can move to
Yes there is a brother here
A cousin there
They’ll help us get back on our feet
And the mass exodus out of Florida continues
And Florida continues growing ever smaller
As the satellite pictures which are displayed on the media
So graphically and so irrefutably display
And no Florida does not completely disappear
There is a small segment of the population who remain
On the land left that is still habitable
And this is now what Florida has become
A small state
A rural state
A quiet state
And now that Nature’s mission has been accomplished
The hurricanes gradually, ever so gradually, diminish
And if Florida continues sinking, it is no longer as noticeable as it had been
The rate of sinking decreases
Nature has accomplished her mission
She has reclaimed Florida
She is satisfied
And slowly but surely leaves the new, smaller, rural, and quiet Florida in peace