Armor of Hope

The Armor of Hope

Peter T. Atkinson

For Clara, 4/28/2015 - age 3

When I think today about you turning three,

I can’t help but wonder what your life will see.
If what the world you live and learn life in,
Will look and be as it has always been,
For today the riot fires are still burning,
Just one of many lessons that still need learning.
How can I prepare you for what you’ll face:
The cynical drivers of the constant race,
The excuses for crimes, the injustice of fair,
The conflicts of interests, arising everywhere,
The labels people will use to tighten your chains,
The time you’ll trade, with no return for your pains?
How can I show to you all of that real,
And still instill in you the real I still feel?
That through the fight, we are always growing,
Despite what we see, and what today is showing.
Yesterday, we thought the world might just end,
And tomorrow’s sun would never rise again,
So despite what we see in the world today,
That there simply is one, leads me now to say,
"I can’t lie and protect you, no, with real you must cope,
All I can give for your armor in life is just hope."

Happy Birthday, Beagle!

(Beautiful picture by DeAnna Poynter Atkinson as always!)