All Children’s Hearts
By John Herlihy

All children’s hearts are thrown carelessly wide open,
The door to their heart never utters a bad word spoken,
They are incapable of sleep having now awoken,
They will need more time before their hearts are broken.

Their heart’s door swings on hinges free in its ways,
The wind moves them silently with the passing of days,
They never close themselves shut when children are at play,
Their emotions overflow like bubbles as if unwilling to stay.

Occasionally a child will be offended and turn against you,
Some trivial slight will have them turn their backs on you,
But not for long will a happy child hold anything against you,
Their innocent emotions will soon overflow with love for you.

In a poem Wordsworth once made the astonishing claim,
That the child was father to the man, sounding insane,
But perhaps there is some truth to the immortal adage,
Children have much to teach us in our impending dotage.

Beware the child who against you closes its heart’s door,
The sentiment will be enough to put you flat on the floor,
Leaving you unhappy and listless wondering what life has in store,
Even the ocean's wave descends to nothing as it greets the shore.