Proserpine's Garden

"We are not sure of sorrow,

And joy was never sure ;

To-day will die to-morrow ;

Time stoops to no man’s lure" ' Upon first look, the uncertainty provided above seems to undercut the environmentalist thoughts we have, to date, put forth. If nothing is assured but the death of today then why should we--corporeal beings destined to die--care about the state of the planet. If such narrow mindedness was preferred then shouldn't we maximize our utility during the short time we are alive? ' I think the pessimism in "The Garden of Proserpine" is apparent and perhaps puts forth the above argument. With that said, the last line, "time stoops to no man's lure", is very interesting. Upon first, and admitedly quick, read, the line appears to read: "time stops...". This depicts an image of time's momentum bowling over all that man puts forth. The correct read, "stoops", indicates nature does not bow nor hunch his shoulders. Nature therefore seems to have the ability to shrug off man's follies. I believe this can be connected to our previous discussion concerning the disconnection of time frames. Specifically, nature is so far sighted that it, in the long run, is more powerful than man. Just a few interested thoughts from a single stanza.