Oh, I Love Those Children

Oh, I love those children.

Those beautiful bright young
high school Floridians,
boldly taking
the leadership
so needed to dampen
our warped relations with guns,
standing steadfastly
as one,
in the faces of the NRA’s,
ne’er-do-well whores
who masquerade unconvincingly
as well meaning politicians,
demanding that they
simply do something
about the situation
or face their votes
in future elections.

(Photo: Laurie Shaull/Flickr/CC-BY-SA 2.0)

Oh, I love those children.

For acting in such positive ways
out of the emotional pain,
they suffered from a deranged
19 year old young man
who took an AR-15
and ended the lives of 17
human beings
partaking in the usual routines
of a school day –
this day being,
of all days,
St. Valentine’s Day,
a day of love letters
and hearts and roses
and chocolates
and such things…

But when this day was done
the world grew sad
while people in high places,
like cowards,
neglected the power they had
to run to their chambers
and halls
and vote away,
without delay
or debate,
weapons of war that spray
bullets by the hundreds
in minutes.
So deficient in integrity
are they, in their failure
to create legislation
to prevent, as best they can,
the devastation
that assault weapons
now, seemingly, expectedly,
heap on our citizens.

But they’ve given birth
to young people I’ve come to love,
to treasure,
and I can feel in my blood
that their activism
is true and enduring
and that they’ll rise above
the accusations that come
when the young
set about
making social and political change,
the claims that they are being manipulated,
used as pawns
by left wing conspiracists bent on exploiting
their naivete for their own gains
as though children
don’t possess facile brains
and fascinating points-of-views,
or interests beyond
merely having fun.

But I love those children.

For how they, after having to
frantically run for their lives,
like soldiers ambushed
by the enemy, by surprise,
seeking cover under desks and in closets
and in whatever nook and cranny
they could hide
while some of their classmates
and teachers died
before their very eyes –
they decided,
after coming out of that alive,
out of the adrenalized energy
that was aroused by their
fears and their rage and their grief,
to do something about
the goddamn guns –
exemplifying
just how clear thinking
young people can be
and it seems we should be listening
to them closely
and join them in doing away
with our nation’s fascination
and blind allegiance to guns.
It’s a matter of life and death.
Theirs.

Oh, I love those children.

Love them.
Love them.
Love them.