how to survive extinctions

dear ms tardigrade
I am 6 years old
and my parents told me about climate change
(which they want me to call global warming)
I am afraid that I will not survive
those rising sea levels heat waves extreme storms
that I will die like many other species

I want to run in the playground
climb that big tree
use crayons and colored pencils in the same drawing
(although granny doesn't like that but it makes grandpa smile)

I saw your picture last week
in the natural history museum five blocks down the road
(do you know why people are not allowed to run in museums?)
the caption stated you survived all
5 mass extinctions

I did not know what an extinction was
or that there were 5
(how old are you anyway?)
but daddy told me that climate change
(I whispered ”global warming” but he was too busy explaining)
would lead to another extinction
(that would make 6 and I am also 6)

I do not want to die
I want to run and play and sing and draw and drink apple juice
eat candy and watch Twitch all day

and you ms (or mr) tardigrade
(daddy did not know how I should address you)
are a specialist in surviving extinctions
if there was a guinness world record for surviving extinctions
your photo would be in that book

could you share how you managed to survive extinctions
some suggestions I can share with daddy would be useful
(a YouTube link is okay)

thank you
Pete
Notes

A tardigrade is a microscopic, aquatic invertebrate who lives in microhabitats all over the world. They have the ability to endure and survive extreme environmental conditions and have survived all 5 mass extinctions. David Sloan and colleagues analyzed that the oceans need to boil before our earth could be sterilised from tardigrades (Sloan et al. 2017). The poem originates from this resilience to extreme conditions and our complete opposite position; in comparison, relative minor environmental changes have major implications to humans (Smith, 2018).
   


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