Tuesday, March 20, 2007

A Prayer for Responsibility for Children

I do have many thoughts which I hope to blog soon. Until then, think on this--and pray.

      A Prayer for Responsibility for Children

      We pray for children
      who sneak popsicles before supper,
      who erase holes in math workbook,
      who can never find their shoes.

      And we pray for those
      who stare at photographers from behind barbed wire,
      who can't bound down the street in a new pair of sneakers,
      who never "counted potatoes",
      who are born in places we wouldn't be caught dead,
      who never go to the circus,
      who live in an X-rated world.

      We pray for children
      who bring us sticky kisses and fistfulls of dandelions,
      who hug us in a hurry and forget their lunch money.

      And we pray for those
      who never get dessert,
      who have no safe blanket to drag behind them,
      who watch their parents watch them die,
      who can't find any bread to steal,
      who don't have rooms to clean up,
      whose pictures aren't on anybody's dresser,
      whose monsters are real.

      We pray for children
      who spend their allowance before Tuesday,
      who throw tantrums in the grocery stores and pick at their food,
      who like ghost stories,
      who shove dirty clothes under the bed, and never rinse out the tub,
      who get visits from the tooth fairy,
      who don't like to be kissed in front of the carpool,
      who squirm in church or temple and scream in the phone,
      whose tears we sometimes laugh at,
      and whose smiles can make us cry.

      We pray for those
      whose nightmares come in the daytime,
      who will eat anything,
      who haven't ever seen a dentist,
      who aren't spoiled by anybody,
      who go to bed hungry and cry themselves to sleep,
      who live and move, but have no being.

      We pray for children who want to be carried,
      and for those who must,
      for those we never give up on
      and for those who don't get a second chance.

      For those we smother...and for those who will grab
      the hand of anybody kind enough to offer it.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

hey there Wendy. Just stopping by to say hello!

Wendy said...

Thanks...um, who are you? :)

Jenny said...

Hi Wendy, I just found your blog recently. That's a very moving poem. I'm glad I found you again today, because I read this post a few days ago but couldn't remember whos blog it was!

RMMcDowell said...

Thanks for making me cry, meanie pants.

I miss you.