What if I am human and tree
grass and dog all at once?
Evolution playing a trick with this mind
programed by fellow humans
to believe & think I am at the top of the food chain
whether I browse through the garden or butcher 
for my meals? What if I am the 
one and the all that is this 
planet Earth, Nyika, UMhlaba
The very ground of my being
My womb of awakening in the Cosmos?

What if I am the river and the fish,
the ocean and the volcano
the human standing at the edge
of that volcano with an ancient urge 
drawing me closer to Earth’s fire
in awe and memory of immortal union,
yet a modern urge prompts me to run fast
in fear and amnesia that I once 
walked on fire, once walked with fire
To the ends of this ancient planet?

What if I am not my sister’s comfort but my sister
Nor my brother’s keeper but my brother?
What if my eyes that see you are the you that sees me?
What if this dog and its wide wagging tail
Are the life force I cannot see, nor hear?
The dog, the wagging tail, the reminder
That I am all that is on this planet and beyond
I am all that and no-thing
The one and the none
The All.

What if I am human and tree, 
grass and dog all at once?

Would I eat the Earth alive?
Would I eat vegetables as though they are not sentient beings, too?
Would I slaughter any other being as though I am entitled to its life?
Would I dredge the ocean of its seaweed and its tuna?
Would I ruin the forest and the river?
Would I put my unconscious hand to any being,
Leaf or bean; beast or berry; fruit or grain
Without giving thanks 
for the gift of life from a life?

What if?
Would I?