The Children

 RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: LIFE SONGS

The Children

 

The child who grows up

In this world of modern madness

Must be of special countenance

Of stubborn strength and endurance

Of ingenious imagination

Of talents beyond our comprehension

Of skills as yet untapped

 

For their world will challenge them

As we were never challenged in ours

 

In their hands we leave the abolition of war

In their hands the health of the planet

In their hands the survival of the species

In their hands the balance of global power

In their hands the scourge of poverty

In their hands the strength of democracy

 

Previous generations have tackled

Problems of critical importance

But none rise to the magnitude of those

Confronting this generation

 

Previous generations have embraced the

Challenge of going to the moon

Crossing oceans to uncover new continents

Finding peace in a world at war

Toppling dictators and hereditary monarchs

Conquering disease and advancing medicine

Building monuments of engineering

Mastering miraculous technologies

 

None of these challenges

However great and earth changing

Compares to what the future holds

For the children of today