Below is the poem for easy reference.
Children in the Darkness
There are children in the darkness
Who have not seen the light
There are children in the darkness
Who someone will teach to fight
Chalk and blackboards will not be
To this door there is no key
From this life they can not flee
And these children are not free
Could we simply light a candle
Could we give them half a chance
Could we teach them how to read
Could we teach them how to dance
Or will a war consume them
Their body and their soul
Will their life and blood be poured
Down some endless thirsty hole
Back into the darkness
From which there is no flight
Back into the darkness
Into which there shines no light
Henry M Bechtold
2010
Shh, momma's only gone for the moment - 12:26 PM
Poem chosen = Children in the darkness by Henry M Bechtold
The following is the author's introduction of the poem,
" I was in Vietnam in 1967 - 68 and again in 1969. I go back often because my soul lives in Vietnam and I go back to visit it from time to time.
I was sitting in my hotel room in Saigon just before Christmas 2009 and I was trying to write a poem about the girls who work in the park and how badly men treat them. I was angry but unable to write anything that did not sound trite or weak. I looked at the TV and the news was on. I did not know what the news reader was saying but in the background was a photo of a small boy with a helmet and an automatic rifle. This poem flowed out. The words just came to me and I typed as fast as I could to get it all down. "
The author got the inspiration from looking looking at the television, showing the news where a small boy was wearing a helmet and holding an automatic rifle. This poem is talking about the children born in the middle of a war and and their plight.
Sources: http://www.warpoetry.co.uk/2010warpoetry.html
Shh, momma's only gone for the moment - 11:13 AM
