Helping Our Youth Survive and Thrive

A Poem for Peace

The desire to serve

Is part of who we are

Living a life of service

Will see us all go far.

Just watch a small child

They love to land a hand

To do something for Mummy,

It is part of their brand.

When we take an action for others,

To give from our core

We experience a moment

When we feel our spirit soar.

It is a part of who we are,

A sense of purpose and duty,

When we see people helping out,

It is a moment of true beauty.

There are surely times

When a sacrifice is due,

To find a deeply selfless moment,

To pull someone through.

But there is a corruption,

That power can ignite

Calling our youth to fight in wars,

That are not in any way right.

Lives have been destroyed

In this bold quest to serve

Politicians keep sending them away,

There are plenty in reserve.

We say, “thank you for your service”,

As they come into our space

But many of these folks

Have been put in a terrible place.

Their desire to be of service

Hijacked by the power drunk and mad

Leaving the battered and broken

Abandoned, angry and sad.

Why do we need war,

When peace is a much better choice,

Why do we stand by and condone,

Instead of using our voice?

The world is littered,

With the broken bodies of our brave,

We allowed the warmongers

To send many to an early grave.

But this is a call out

To all you good Fathers and Brothers,

We now must stand tall,

To prevent grief for the Mothers.

There is a new fight on the table,

A battle so desperately needed,

Bring our wrath to the politicians,

This quest must be heeded.

You know that what we condone

Whatever we walk past,

Whatever we choose to ignore,

Will turn to disaster so fast.

I am a man of peace,

And of patient persistence,

We must talk through our challenges

We can break down the resistance.

As I stand on April 25,

Observing the tragic stories of ANZAC Day,

My heart cries for the grief,

It is time for a better way.

We can no longer point fingers

And find someone to blame,

We must stand up and show up,

Lest we live forever in shame.

My grandsons are just young

Innocent and bright little lads,

I want to watch them grow in Peace,

And one day become Dads.

They don’t need a war,

To make them a man,

Just loving kind guidance

Some mentorship and a plan.

And they will be masculine young men,

Ready to stand up for what is right,

Sincere, compassionate and kind,

With just enough guardianship and fight.

Their service will be kindness

And relieving suffering among the poor,

Being a backbone of their community,

And never going to war.

But for this level of peace

To emerge so profound,

It is now on our shoulders

To stubbornly stand our ground.

And a future vision I see,

Something I will always work for,

Will be a Military service,

Serving as a Peace Corp

So our young and our brave

Who hold big service in their heart

Will find a noble quest

Where they can all do their part.

Photo by Rogério Souza : https://www.pexels.com/photo/brunette-man-on-grassland-17527963/