Thoughts On The Children Of War Poem by Jim Yerman

I wish we adults would think of our children more…
before we decide to fight…before we go to war.

I wish we could remember our words are pervasive…
our actions so far-reaching…
and will serve to shape the future of the children we are teaching.

I wish we'd understand…as we fight for power from coast to coast…
In any war we wage…it is our children who suffer most.

We should ask ourselves this question:
What type of adults will our children grow up to be…
If hatred, and war and bigotry are all they ever see?

Our children are looking to us…
every moment…
every day…
to guide them on how to act…
to help them know what they're supposed to say.

What can we possibly say to soothe the children of war…
who've lost their home…their family….
how can we possibly ease their pain
once we've destroyed their innocence…and symmetry

For once the decision to go to war is made…
no matter how much we hope and pray…
we've also made the decision
to take someone's childhood away.

Oh, how I wish we adults would think of our children…
before we go to war…
because even if some children survive…
they won't be children anymore.