“To The Children”

When I was a child I’d often lie in tall grass gazing at clouds. I’d fantasize all sorts of shapes from grotesque monsters, dinosaurs, giraffes, to God smoking a pipe.

I often wondered what type of man I would be. What I would look like, do for a living and so on.

Like most kids I didn’t really listen when adults would tell us to enjoy childhood because you’re only young once. I got into my fair share of trouble now and then but it was innocent for the most part. I didn’t really worry too much about it as my parents were never mean to us kids and I knew they wouldn’t stay angry for long.

I recall the fifth grade when our teacher "Mr. Schroeder" explained the atomic bomb to us. He told us that how ever since it’s invention people had to live with the threat of nuclear war and possible mass extinction. I don’t believe that many of us nine and ten year olds could really wrap our minds around the concept of massive death. Let alone death on the scale of billions of lives lost just like that. We were preoccupied with childish games and daydreams. We couldn’t know or understand that the so-called leaders of our world, the presidents, premiers, ayatollahs, the fat cat oil men were playing their own childish versions of our games. I doubt they understood anymore than us children that they were playing immature games with our lives!


We are grown up now, but the leaders haven’t changed, just their names and faces. They still play their twisted childish games with our lives, with our lands.

My innocence has fled. It left the first time I saw a baby cry trying to awaken her dead mother. Casualties of the leaders war games. Horrific visions of children burnt beyond recognition on the six o’clock news. We bring some of these babies to our hospitals to be looked after, to foster homes to be raised with hopefully a little less insanity. This is all very nice and I suppose it helps to salve America’s collective conscience, it’s guilt at being a part of such insane and ugly terrors.

I don’t feel hate but I get so goddamned mad when I think of the worlds leaders vying for power and land. Fighting in oil rich countries, young soldiers and innocent citizens suffer and die. The leaders never suffer unless they violate the unwritten code and get caught at some of their hypocritical double and triple dealing. They become so slippery when pushed to the wall and place the blame everywhere but on themselves.

Like a child I can still wish that these so-called great men, these slimeball power merchants would wake up and open their eyes to the real world.

Like a child I hope they will finally realize what an atomic bomb can do and somehow find a way to stop their childish grown up games.

My memories of childhood are peaceful ones. Now that I am older , and no longer innocent I know it’s not just for the children that people must come to their senses. It’s for all people everywhere, young and old. But especially for the young ones. We must save the world for our children, our babies. They deserve to be secure in their innocence. The only way that will happen is for the pathetic little oil men, the politicians, premiers, ayatollahs, to open up their eyes and see that we are all children of the Same God, Who is Love! And GROW UP!!!



“To The Children, Part Two”
The childish games of grown-up men
preocuppy their minds
the same old song since time began
"it’s not yours it’s mine"
the spears and bows of olden wars
are remnants of the past
missiles now reach other shores
so unbelievably fast
the childish leaders of self import
don’t realize the truth
wars today are not the sort
that anything lives through

our babies are our greatest joys
they make our lives complete
while leaders play with atomic toys
our kids play at our feet
the childish fights of our kids
are innocent in purity
while oil men just up their buds
with grown up immaturity

you’d think that men both small and great
would have the sense to know
young soldiers die in foreign states
the kids are first to go

the sufferings the leaders cause
mostly hurts the children
they don’t know of wars and bombs
unfortunately, they learn

rich men stop your warring games
games are for the kids
oil fights and bombs insane
are games that no one wins
stop your childish grown up bouts
that will make this earth a grave
let reason clear up childish doubts
there’s so much that we must save

starting with the ones’ who learn
of patriotic frenzies
it angers me when babies burn
because of mens insanities

Save the babies
Save our world
Grow up you
self important
immature
grown up children.

Copyright Sam Hyde
12-03-86