AN ODE TO THE WOMEN OF EARTH

Alone, a woman is a root curling for change,

But together, women are a forest alive with spirit: a riotous power, the most timeless pact, a call to act, to all those who hear it.

Sturdy as crouched valleys, proud as hard-baked earth, there is nothing more natural than a woman who knows the worth

of making the choice to raise her voice.

She is a force of nature, the world’s thorax, the global village’s throat, she a Lorax speaking for those who cannot speak, defying those who’d think us weak.

In and of herself, she is a tall mountain peak: Unintimidated and undeniably unique.

Combined, in our daily actions, big or small, we can fall in line to preserve the planet for future generations. We have the force of a hurricane, but we build instead of break.

We have the might of an earthquake but we strengthen instead of shake.

For all our sakes, we fight to make the world a cleaner, greener place. We take a stand, answering the call not just for ourselves but all who will follow in our wake.

We don’t sit, wallow or wait, because we know the planet’s fate is in our hands. We see that land, sea and sky has never been debatable, that a dream is only as attainable as it is sustainable. We don’t just imagine the movement, we began it, we plan it, for the good of the planet, women ran it, knowing we can. It is not a question of just preservation, but progress.

We will not rest:

Here in ELLE we yell it, tell it, spell it out, shout it out:

In our daily decisions we women may give that which you can’t borrow: the will to rise, even if just for today for the eyes who will be watching us tomorrow.