We Owe No Debt for Sins of Ages Past

Commentary on current events

Each human owes a debt to earn his way in life.

Chaos, chains, and cruelties glare on every side.

Adapt or die to pay the keep for ward and wife.

Faith, honor, and courage enable us to survive.

Man’s works thrive on truth, fall away with lies.

 

The past buried its bones, its missteps to revile.

Each age braved thorns but loved the buds, too.

Now, those destroyers lash with hate and guile

To rip asunder our memories of ancestral pride.

History etches in stone the homage it inspires.

 

Demand for past dues begs the question why.

We live our lives by compromise -- stay and play,

Or turn away to find our niche in other locality,

Alone, we seek like mind, kind face, and smiles.

Shared values help us to match pride for stride.

 

“You and I” become we only if both can agree.

Prove your mettle, jump into my fray for right.

Honor my values, benefit me with your wiles.

Show me that you care. I will give back in kind.

Prove your birthright, and I will pledge my life.

 

Western idealism teaches our youth the joys

Of giving to the humble, with some expectation

That charity bring back tenfold in time of need.

Only cruelest traveler would snatch the gold

From my teeth as I take repose in a shady glen.

 

Gutter snipes might peck away our serenity,

Engorge themselves at trough of our charity;

But do not say for past ills that I owe you.

I offer neither money nor morsel to assuage

For my ancestors’ sins. Your kin sinned, too.

Author's Note

Anyone who doesn't cringe at the serious perils in current events just can't see the hungry beast hiding in the bushes.

Reviews

[Chris Shaw]

A well crafted poem with a strong message. Your line " Do not say for past ills that I owe you and the final two lines, I totally agree with. We are not our ancestors, time has moved on.

Chris

[John the Baptist]

A very well thought out piece. I am amazed at how a generation disdains its predecessors because their ways were based on a different worldview. Apparently they don't understand that in the future others will pay them in the same coin.

[bigfootprint]

So true, as the saying goes, History repeats itself. The last time the streets were thronged with communists was during the Vietnam war. They didn't even look up at the consequences of their leftist stupidity. This time we almost lost our nation.