Activity 14.1: Personal Reflection on the State of the World
After listening to the song, watching the video, and studying the lyrics (see below), write a 25-50 word personal reflection on the state of the world as you see it. Do you share the narrator's (singer's) opinion? If not, why not? If you agree, what can you do in your own life to become an "agent of change?"
MERCY, MERCY, ME (THE ECOLOGY SONG) BY MARVIN GAYE
Ah, mercy, mercy me
Ah, things ain't what they used to be (ain't what they used to be)
Where did all the blue skies go?
Poison is the wind that blows
From the north and south and east.
Woah, mercy, mercy me, yeah
Ah, things ain't what they used to be (ain't what they used to be)
Oil wasted on the ocean and upon our seas
Fish full of mercury.
Oh mercy, mercy me, ah
Ah, things ain't what they used to be (ain't what they used to be)
Radiation underground and in the sky
Animals and birds who live nearby are are dying
Oh, mercy, mercy me, oh
Hey, things ain't what they used to be
What about this overcrowded land?
How much more abuse from man can she stand?
Oh, na, na, na
Na, na, na,
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Hey, ooh, woo
Source: Musixmatch / Songwriters: Marvin Gaye
Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) lyrics © Nmg Music, Mgiii Music, Fcg Music, Jobete Music Co Inc