The Promises of Humankind

Tireless occupations,
interminable commutes,
leaving and returning to one home.

We made an unspoken vow,
in sickness and in health,
in day and night,
in happiness and sorrow,
that we would protect our world.

Nature retaliates at its mistreatment,
and almost instantaneously,
our Earth is reshaped into the confines of our home.

No cascading waterfalls,
or endless grassy plains.

No warm summer nights,
where the gentle breeze lingers like a fond embrace.

We are suddenly driven apart,
bound only by the fact that we are and always will be human.
That is what makes us remarkable.


That was my poem based on my photograph. Just across the street from us, there is a small building called "Paramount Pest Control". What makes the building I captured in my image so special is that it has changed so much over the years. Initially, it was a local pest control business. Then, it was turned into a studio to rent. Now, the lower floor is an empty artspace and the floor of the building captured in the photo is an apartment. I thought that the history of the building was important to include because it has transformed over time, which relates to how we too, change as time goes by.

Now you may be thinking, how does a window relate to the theme of humanity? Well, I'll do my best to explain it. I find that looking through windows gives you a small glimpse into someone else's life. (Hence the title of the image "A Glimpse Into Life" The window is also linked to humanity in another way. In the first stanza of my poem, I describe how previously, our home was a place we would leave and return to daily, but it was a place of relaxation, not confinement. Then, in my third stanza, I write, "Nature retaliates at its mistreatment, and almost instantaneously, our Earth is reshaped into the confines of our home." Essentially, that means that together, we have mistreated our Earth, which initiated a pandemic and trapped us in our homes. Therefore changing our perception of what "home" really is. In the final lines of my poem, I wrote this, "We are suddenly driven apart, bound only by the fact that we are and always will be human. That is what makes us remarkable." What I'm trying to say is, we have all driven each other apart because of our cruelty, which means that it is up to all of us as the human race to fix our mistakes. Due to the fact that the poem is mostly centered around our new home life, I thought that capturing a photo that shows a glimpse into our current lives would symbolize humanity. My main message is: no matter what, we are in this together.