During Persephone's absence, the flowers wilt, the trees shed their leaves, and the fields grow barren and cold. Demeter refuses to let anything grow until she finds her daughter. Demeter finally discovers that Persephone has been kidnapped, and with the help of Zeus, retrieves her from Hades. With the return of Persephone, the flowers and trees begin to ripen again. While Persephone is in Hades, earth lacks vibrancy and color.
Nature becomes non-existent as portrayed in the poem.
Eliot sees earth as motionless and dead. However brief, Eliot acknowledges this transition of seasons when he discusses the children singing and dancing around the cactus. Life is black and white. Life is plain, simple, and boring. Like rats, we are rodents who do the bare minimum in order to survive.