image from thefemalecelebrity.info
Tough Love
“Being a dark angel, who accepts being your spirit guide,
is no easy job--but then neither was being on the front
lines during the war in heaven.”--Shannon L. Alder.
How
do we
stare into the
innocent faces of
our grandchildren, without
a spill-over of aching
regret as we realize
we now inhabit an
age where
terrorists spill innocent blood
in
schools,
night clubs,
& theaters.
This
is
the
world
we
bequeath
them.
Glenn Buttkus
Posted over at dVerse Poets Pub Q44
I suppose the same way our grand parents looked into our eyes knowing they bequeathed to us a world in which elected leaders exterminated the "undesirables" by the millions in gas chambers and concentration camps. I'm not sure the cruelty and hatred of the human race is any worse in this age than in the one before it or the one before that. It is manifested somewhat differently, but the underlying hatred and cruelty have been there from the beginning. Perhaps all we can do is hand down to our grand children the love and forgiveness that we hold dear and hope that is what endures.
ReplyDeleteI think we should be careful not to seed a single seed of hatred... after all even terrorists have been sweet children once... and it takes just a little stone in a shoe to cause a wound...
ReplyDeleteOh, but those sweet faces (our children, our grandchildren) are the solution to the problem. More love. More grace. People who value people, no matter what. People who build bridges, not walls. Spill tears as needed, but never blood.
ReplyDeleteHow sad to bequeath that kind of world to our children and grandchildren. The loss of innocent lives, specially those of children, is very tragic.
ReplyDeleteAnd so said my parents and their parents and their parents. In all the ages of "civilation" there has been some kind of horror, of devastation, some group hated. I prefer to think of life with hope, even when confronted with horror, I still have hope. And that is what I bequeath to the children of others as I have none of my own - hope and belief in a better tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteWe repeat our ill histories through the generations by finding different ways to spread the same hates. Not always recognizing the slight differences until after the damage is done and the ways the paths diverged are revealed. Still we must try and for the most part we do succeed, it's why when the horrible things happen we do eventually recognize them for what they are. That this is not our norm and we can/should do better.
ReplyDeleteYou said it for me. One of my bigger regrets in life is that I have no children. But there are times when I am grateful not to have to think what would happen in their world...that would be grandchildren, I suppose.
ReplyDeletePowerful piece. Unfortunately evil and darkness never dies. It merely finds a new inhabitant once the other one dies off.
ReplyDeletewe do our best, day by day, to set thr right example.
ReplyDeleteyou've expressed the fears of many
It is human, I suppose, to think the atrocities of our time are worse than those of the past. But I wonder if that is true. Perhaps it's just that the media shouts more loudly.
ReplyDeleteYes, there has always been violence but the problem is that we now have bigger weapons able to kill more people faster..and all await with dread, I think, the eventual launch of the biggest weapon of all!
ReplyDeleteI agree with De (and Crosby, Still and Nash) - teach your children well. Give them more love and more grace, how to value others. Spill tears by all means, but never blood.
ReplyDeleteIn the past, atrocities like this always seemed to happen somewhere else, far away and unfamiliar. More recently, it seems to be getting closer.
And certainly not the lives we've chosen! The greatest concentration of love (life's elixir) is close to home. Our children will learn when we learn to love unconditionally. A wonderful message, Glenn!
ReplyDeleteDesensitization. I believe that is what it is and it begins very early in life. Violence in the media is so accessible and acceptable, blindly fed to our children breaking down those pathways of empathy. Very sad.
ReplyDeleteNot me. I do NOT bequeath them this world. I want this world to change and I bequeath them the joys and smiles of most people -- the hope that others can bring - the love that I share. Finally, a few have stood up in the halls of congress, during the request for "a moment of silence to honor those who lost their lives in Orlando" and said, we don't need a moment of silence. We need action!
ReplyDeleteThe answer is alWays
ReplyDeleteno to lies.. no.. to group thInk..
knee jerk reacTioNs to anGer..
hate.. and vengeance..
knowing that tHeRe
are those who
cannot care
even if they
wanted.. too..
and saying no
in a loud clear voice
when it comes to votes
for unjustified wars..
when it comes
to someone
making fun
of someone
else with out
saying no..
it goes
with yes
of HOldinG
hands Brave
and free no matter
what it takes.. courage
oF LoVe noW..
and never
balls
alone..
yeaH..iT takes
juST DoinG iT..
NO to fear.. and
hate and yes yes!
yes! to hope and Love
to change the world and
bE the change ya wanna Be..:)
It hurts, to realise what we are leaving behind.
ReplyDeleteIt is most sad when one sees the lack of political will on the part of big powers who can make a difference but do not. Ordinary folks take the brunt with gritted teeth
ReplyDeleteHank
We can only bequeath to our children what we ourselves believe and practice. Cruelty, hatred and mass murders have been since the beginning of man but I think Mish has a very good point. In our modern world there is much available through the media that has brought desensitization to many of our children and adults too. Killing others in video games is as easy as pushing a button, with no sense of loss...it's dangerous.
ReplyDeleteThis is a new world and I for one am not impressed with the direction it is going. Those dark angels are out there causing havoc.
ReplyDeleteHow indeed?
ReplyDelete