That life and its dangers therein will truly burn.

For they wander unholy streets begging their daily bread,

and often barter themselves, just for a place to lay their head.

So suffer the little children who cry out in the night,

Who survive by chance and succumb to the predators delight.

So light a candle, and say a prayer,

Offer of yourself, and show that you care.

For they bare witness to the evil that men have done,

And they surrender their very soul,

only to see the setting of yet another sun.

For I have bore witness to such horrible things

when I was but a kid myself, of only eighteen.

We had arrived in port for a four day stay,

and it was then that I noticed her across the way.

She was all of twelve and dressed in white.

and it was painfully plain for me to see,

that her innocence she no longer held, for it had long ago taken flight.

For she would wiggle and smile,

And sashay on the corner for awhile.

She would then,

after being rejected by several men.

Return to a silent place beneath a tree,

And it was then and there, as a child that she would weep.

I was shocked beyond belief to see things such as this,

For in my world, sheltered from such pain, things like this did not exist.

So say a little prayer for the children of the world today,

For a child should but have a chance to survive by another way.

* Note: Though this is a tale from third world woes, it is not uncommon for this to take place on the streets of America today. Children deserve a chance to be children, and we as adults, need to see that this chance is given.  I often think of that little girl, and I wonder, I wonder if she survived, I wonder…and I wonder.

J. Allen Wilson © 2004