Why, Oh Child: A Sonnet
“Why, Oh Blessed child of mine, must you fight
the beauty to which you make yourself blind
I painted you, my child, a halo white
So hate and cruelty you would not find”
“Father if I’m your son then who are they?
Surely they must be scum who are below
They think, nor do they act in the same way
Why then, my father, should I let them go?”
“All life, each person, he is kin of mine
My sons, those others are, can you not see?
Different yes, but nonetheless benign
So why can you not let your anger be?”
“I can’t unearth the seeds that I have sown”
“Then for your sins in life you must atone”
This. is. freaking. beautiful. And so so powerful. It's extremely moving and basically summarises the way we handle differences opposed to the way we should handle them. And unlike your other poems, I feel like this poem has a simple message about peace and equality whilst, at the same time, explores the thought process that goes behind all this hate and differentiation. Stop making it so hard for me to pick favourites! Actually don't. Never stop. Or you'll regret it in the afterlife.
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ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this sonnet. I was so awestruck when I first read it that I said I'll comment only when I find something worthy enough to write for this particular piece. I love how you used the picture to hint that the Paris attack was your inspiration but kept the poem ambiguous so it could apply to anything. The fact that it flows like a conversation is very interesting and so it your font for each party. The last two lines were especially moving and end the poem perfectly. Even though it's very different from your usual posts (barely descriptive haha) I loved it as much, or maybe even more than the others.
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