Children

A child is not born to sustain a population,

to enlarge a family or further inflation.

A child does not exist to be told what to do.

Anyone blessed with a child knows this to be true.

We have children when we realize we can  no longer make-believe.

And our childhood memories become nearly impossible to retrieve.

The sadness this discovery creates within,

Soon becomes alleviated as we watch a  new life begin.

With every innocent giggle and cry of  laughter we hear,

We somehow become reborn and relive each year.

Children enable us to relive the mystery and surprise that exists in life.

Allowing a parent to appreciate the  ordinary and forget some of their strife.

We remember how we felt the moment we  first discovered our shadow;

amazed at the persistence and loyalty of this shady fellow.

Even the fears and worries of a child  cause us to reminisce.

For unlike ours, they are so easy to dismiss.

To be naive again and believe that everything will be alright,

as long as mommy or daddy is there to  tuck you in at night.

The world is never again as beautiful as when through a child's eyes.

When good always defeats evil and there  is no understanding of deceit or lies.

It may seem selfish, and to this I agree.

But by having a child, one was reborn  within me.

Julie Lewis

MSI