Now inside the Tropics Zone, we have WS Merwin,
someone who continues to work in service to the natural world.
"On the last day of the world, I would want to plant a tree."
And this is-- it was funny.
This is a piece from a longer poem.
And when I saw it that way, I didn't
know how I felt about it.
I didn't know if it was too much like advertising copy--
if it was.
And I came back I said, gee, I wonder if I should have
put more of the poem up there.
And these two lines have probably
had the greatest impact on visitors coming through.
And what I learned, in part, Merwin is a translator.
And he's translated Asian, Middle Eastern.
I mean, he's translated many, many different writers.
But within this is something that you often
see within both Asian and Middle Eastern writing.
And that there is a turn that takes place that engages
two parts of your brain.
"On the last day of the world--" and the brain
contemplates on the last day of the world--
and then, "I would want to plant a tree," that moment of hope.