Darling, if I may ask:
How did you view the world?
Did you view it piece by piece
Or did you view it as a whole?
Did you look at the minute details
Or did you glimpse the big picture?
If you thought the world was tiny,
With small events and insignificance
Outside your little bubble –
Did you take into account
The terrors of the world:
Bosnia
The Holocaust
Darfur
Afghanistan
Syria
Egypt
Uganda
Israel
Did you take into account
The amount of blood shed;
The numerous families torn;
The screams that curdle blood;
The child who is a soldier;
The mother who is a widow;
The daughter who is a slave.
Did you witness
The land ravaged by war,
The corruption of society,
The death of peace,
The abandonment of tradition,
The loss of faith,
The thirst for blood.
Do you recognize
The fear of tomorrow and the next,
That you don’t control your destiny?
The fear of happiness and laughter,
Because it, like the wind, is fleeting?
Do you understand:
The burden of a mother
Who works for her family’s survival?
The sadness of an elder
Who has lost her home?
The emptiness of a child,
Who’s innocence has been taken away?
Do you even begin to comprehend
The true meaning of happiness –
When a child who has never known sweetness
Is given a treat for no reason whatsoever?
When a mother sees her child’s smile,
After months and months of tears?
After all the horrors,
Are you able to see beauty
In a sunset?
In a smile?
In a dance?
In an embrace?
In a song?
Can you admire
The majesty of a mountain?
The serenity of a waterfall?
The mystery of a cave?
The openness of a prairie?
The sheer vastness of a canyon?
Can you see beauty
In the complexity of history?
In the simplicity of a village?
In the spirituality of a religion?
In the life of a city?
In the happiness of a people?
Now, darling, I’ll ask again.
How will you view the world?