"We fell asleep in one world," by Haroon Rashid has intrigued millions of social media users. Rashid's simple but powerful poem is currently exploding with popularity. It's gone viral on almost every social media platform. But why? Rashid, is an Indian author with no notable notoriety. (People do not know who he is.) He's not famous for his previous literary works. Nor is he connected to any particular celebrities. And to be honest, most people who have recited or reposted his poem, have no earthly idea who the author actually is. (Imagine hearing and seeing your words shared across humanity, credited only as the work of an unknown author from an unknown source.) Regardless of a failure in works cited, Rashid has a message that he's determined to share. He has a statement that needs to be heard. Not just for a particular gender, race, or demographic. It's something that still applies whether you're young or old . . . rich or poor . . . in America or Africa. It's a global demand and it's coming from the world. In "We fell asleep in one world," Rashid explains that while humans are quarantined in their home cages, life on the outside goes on. The world is a beautiful and magnificent place. And while enjoying its peace and beauty, the world issues a simple but very strong message to its confined inhabitants: “You are not necessary. The air, earth, water and sky without you are fine. When you come back, remember that you are my guests. Not my masters." Answer the following question by commenting on this blog post: In your personal opinion, what does or should the world's message in the poem mean to human readers? (Tip: Put on your thinking caps. Rashid recently tweeted: "In this time of not going outside, let's go a little inside." Think about that. Reflect on your current time in isolation and solitude (quarantine/shelter-in-place). Your answer to this blog should state what we need to do differently in respect to the world when our quarantine has officially ended.)
Aidan Overcash
4/14/2020 11:00:24 am
In my opinion the poems message was that we should treat the world with respect, and stop destroying and polluting it because we are only "guests". We need to stop being so wasteful and recycle more. We should focus more on alternative fuels and move away from fossil fuels.
Joel Louis-Ugbo
4/14/2020 11:04:41 am
In my opinion, the world's message in the poem means that we should stop treating the world like we own it, like we deserve it. Humans, as the Earth's guests, come and go every day while the world remains infinite, staying as the host. It never ceases to exist while we pass it on by. It provides us with everything we need to live, yet we treat it like trash. Pollution, the biggest problem claiming the Earth right now, could've been prevented if we only thought of the repercussions of our actions. And like the poem said, the Earth doesn't need us to stay alive and healthy. We are not needed for the Earth to flourish, yet we still take that for granted and dampen its flame. Humans are like those little cousins that you may or may not have and come to your house just to wreck it, leaving you to clean up the mess. The only thing is that the Earth can't clean up the huge mess that we've made by itself and it only took a couple generations for us to figure that out. In conclusion, if anything, we need to start treating the Earth as the proper host it is.
Zach Murphey
4/15/2020 05:53:02 am
I believe that, in this poem, the world's message is that, while humans believe that we play an integral role in the world around us, we are actually unimportant to the natural functions of Earth. Rashid begins the poem by demonstrating some of the ways the world has changed due to the Covid-19 outbreak. This puts into perspective how quickly and drastically things can change due to nature. The poem then switches gears and discusses the ways that the world is the same. This shows that, while humans control some things, the most primal and vital forces of nature are completely and utterly free from our control, beginning long before we were here and continuing long after we're gone. Finally, the poem concludes by saying that, overall, humans are unnecessary to the functions of the world and we must learn that we don't control the Earth, we simply live on it. I agree with the poem and think that we must do things differently when the current crisis is over. This includes looking at life from a different perspective, remembering that we are not that important, and treating the world with proper respect and care.
Emily Ellingson
4/15/2020 09:22:39 am
I think the poem is trying to tell us to not take advantage of the world and what is has to offer. We treat the Earth like we own it, but it is trying to show that it owns us. We pollute it everyday because we do not think anything bad can come of it, but animals are dying and its getting harder to breath. In the poem it says ¨I think its sending us a message.¨ The message is Earth trying to tell us it owns us by ¨putting humans in cages¨ because without us the Earth is better off. While we are at home the cloud above China has cleared and the water in Italy is clear enough to see dolphins. We should start thanking the Earth for letting us stay because we are ruining it. The Earth has shown that it owns us an I hope people will take this experience after this is over and help fix the environment.
Nia Nelson
4/16/2020 07:28:09 am
In the poem "We fell asleep in one world" the overall message is that we are not a vital source to the Earth and that we do not own it. This poem helps the reader understand what many scientist have been trying to tell us for years. We are killing our own planet. Instead of acting entitled to our Earth we should act as if we are guests.
Mason Williams
4/16/2020 07:49:42 am
In my opinion, the message of the story was to treat what you're lucky to have with respect. The poem talked about how the Earth would be fine if we weren't there. Yet people still act like the own it. Earth doesn't need us to function, everyday people come and go and the Earth still functions without them. If we didn't exist the Earth would be better a place. Everyday people pollute the most important thing to us, the one thing that we really need. Earth provides the resources that we can't live without all by itself. And we still treat it like garbage causing many problems that wouldn't exist if we had just thought about what we were doing before we did it. I believe that Rashid's tweet has great meaning. The tweet stated "In this time of not going outside, let's go a little inside." I believe that this means that while we have all this time, we should focus on who we are. Rashid says to go a little inside, meaning to go inside ourselves and think about the people that we are.
Katherine Maturino
4/16/2020 07:54:15 am
I think that the poem means that the world doesn't belong to us. People shouldn't act as if they own it. This quarantine is mother nature's way of showing us we are just guests. We've polluted the Earth so bad, she's cleaning it her way. The waters in Italy are so much cleaner now that we're in quarantine.
Hailey James-Ricks
4/16/2020 08:03:23 am
In my opinion, the message from the world is to treat it better. While we're all stuck at our houses unable to really go anywhere, the world is still thriving. The pollution clouds have shrunk greatly over Italy and the decrease in traffic has had positive effects on the environment. This shows that the world does not need humans to survive and does better without us. This goes to show that we need to be more cautious with how we treat the earth and our surroundings.
Ashley Postell
4/16/2020 09:22:57 am
In my opinion, this message should show readers that we need to do a better job protecting the planet. We also need to learn that the earth doesn't belong to us but we are visitors of the earth. I think after quarantine we should be produce less pollution, recycle more instead of wasting items, and show more value towards the earth. This will help improve the air, our health, and the earth. 4/16/2020 09:23:11 am
In my opinion, I think that this poem is telling us that we need to treat the world differently. It is not ours for the taking, and we do not have the rights to terrorize the Earth as if we own it. Without us the Earth moves on and so does other life, in fact the Earth is doing better without our interference. So, as the poem says when we come back as guest we need to be such. I also feel that us being trapped in our "cages" is a lesson, not a punishment. I feel this way because the only punishment will come from ourselves. To stay away from this punishment I feel that us as humans need to respect the Earth, we need to treat everything in it including the Earth itself with care so we can continue as humble guest.
Drew F.
4/16/2020 10:51:07 am
I believe the world is telling us that we are hurting the world with pollution, global warming, and poaching other animals.The world is telling us that we don't own everything on this planet. This is our punishment for destroying the world around us and when we get through convid 19 we must respect the place we live in more.
Kyra Rosenfeld
4/16/2020 11:47:31 am
I think the world's message in the poem is to have perspective on what you do to the world. The little things you do to this world have a major impact. Whether it be throwing something in the trash that can be recycled or deciding to drive your car to a place where you could've walked, it still makes an impact. Everything will always add up, and it will count. We will not always be here, but the Earth always will. We need to treat it better because it will outlive us in the long run.
PAITYN ARNOLD
4/16/2020 04:58:27 pm
In my opinion, I think the message from this poem is telling us that we are not necessary. We should go about things differently because this isn't our world. It was here way before us and its still going to be here when we're gone. As "guest" visiting earth we have done a horrible job keeping up with it, and we should be more aware of the damages we've caused because non of this is ours.
Jackson Kodani
4/17/2020 07:57:58 am
In my opinion, I believe the message sent out by the poem is very simple. " As long as you treat our planet with respect, you won't have to worry. " People all over the world are harming our planet, causing entire populations to die out. We are the ones putting our selves into cages, but we all blame global warming. We all know it is caused by us, but we instinctively say that our planet is dying. In reality we are killing it, but there are ways to reverse that process.
Alex Mondragon
4/17/2020 08:29:02 am
In my opinion, the world is telling us to care more about the environment we live in. During this pandemic, pollution is not as bad since no one is going outside and the air pollution in China, which was previously bad, is now decreasing. In the canals of Venice, there is clear water and you could finally see the fishes in there since there was less tourist. The world is showing us that it can do fine without us. We are just “guests” that ruins Earth in some ways. I feel like most of us take Earth for granted and don’t care about it like we should. After this whole pandemic, we should appreciate Earth more.
Jailyn Davila
4/20/2020 07:43:46 pm
I believe the poem ¨We fell asleep in one world¨ is saying that we need to stop acting like the world is ours and open our eyes to realize its not. The world continues it´s life while humanity is stopped because of a virus that doesn´t affect the earth in any way. It´s taken a virus so people can realize that the earth thrives without humanity. The earth is doing so much better without all the people and their pollution walking the streets. This poem is telling everyone that they are only guests on this world and are not necessary while they need the world to survive so we should treat it with respect and not like we own it. Comments are closed.
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AuthorMr. Reygan Reed is a 8th grade English Language Arts teacher at Henderson Middle School. Archives
May 2021
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