A Golden Darkness - by Diya Arvind

Ever since I discovered Greek Mythology, I have been on an endless hunt, trying to find the constellations born from it in the night sky. But I have never been successful

in locating Pegasus, or Andromeda, or Orion. At first, I thought that was because they only existed in Greece. But as I grew older, I learnt that it was because the sky was so polluted with excess light, that the stars were no longer visible. This deeply worried me, since there will be several generations who would no longer be able to lie down on the terrace, leisurely staring up at the sky, trying to find the patterns and matching them to the stories woven thousands of years ago. So, when I learnt about WiDE and its efforts to rectify this unsolicited, illuminous situation, I knew I wanted to help spread awareness to the other people of my generation, to warn them of the long-term effects light pollution can have. Which is the reason I made this poem- A Golden Darkness - and this illustration; to show how it affects humans as well as nature. I hope this helps raise enough awareness to try and get more people to realize the true value of darkness, so that even if I am never able to see the Greek figures in the sky, at least the next generations will be able to..

A Golden Darkness 

Come, let us go back in time 

Back to the good old days 

Back when there were button phones 

And the world was still a maze 

A time without cellphones, ChatGPT 

And other things we can’t live without 

A time where once the sun set, 

It was only darkness throughout 

A time when all you saw at night, 

Was the dark, mysterious, vast, black sky 

Peppered with stars throughout 

Once the sun bid goodbye 

Several great scientists 

Were inspired by the night sky 

Such as Galileo and Newton 

Who looked up and wondered ‘why’ 

But this darkness is depleting 

Getting replaced by skyglow 

Due to spillage of excess light 

Harmful white instead of a soft yellow 

Just imagine a forest without wilderness 

Where nocturnal animals can’t hunt or mate 

Where fireflies can’t put on their golden show 

They will be driven to extinction at this rate 

It is not just nocturnal animals 

But all living being that shall be in danger 

As darkness regulates our sleep-wake cycle 

Without which there will be problems, major 

Even young sea turtles 

Fresh out of their shell 

Need the ocean’s luminescence to guide them 

To the waters they dwell 

However, with the excess light 

They get confused and bewildered 

Giving predators and advantage 

To feast on them as they meander 

Now what can be done to stop all this; 

There are several things we can do 

Such as replace white lights 

With yellow or orange hues 

We must learn to light 

What’s necessary, when necessary 

Shield lights and use motion sensors 

To light up temporarily 

Humans evolved to need the dark 

Just as much as we need light 

We used celestial objects to navigate 

When there was nothing else in sight 

That is why it is imperative to conserve the darkness 

Covered with stars and animals in all its glory 

Before we lose them all to light pollution 

Before such a time becomes nothing but a story 

- Diya Arvind