Carried on the wind's back,
I tumble and drift.
Across cracked concrete,
and garbage-strewn turf.

Created to shield,
Against an invisible enemy.
I emerged for a battle,
that quickly faded.

No longer needed,
I lie discarded.
Among other faces,
all identical and all forgotten.

The world moves on,
and leaves me behind.
A cast-off protector,
now a polluter.

They called me essential,
When the threat loomed ahead.
Now I'm only litter,
Forgotten debris.

I'm swept into gutters,
and urban streams.
Contributing slowly,
to the plastic scourge.

In landfills I'll linger,
For centuries and more.
Never degrading,
a permanent scab.

No pandemic will curb,
your endless waste .
You plunder on endlessly,
heedless of ecological ruin.

Convenience and comfort,
at the environment's cost.
No lessons learned,
from disaster's blaring alarm.

So I drift in the wind,
another piece of trash.
Among endless droves,
that choke the earth.

Wondering if you'll ever,
awaken at last.
To save the lungs,
of the ailing planet.