For Irma and Joe
Written for one of the slain teachers in Uvalde, Texas and her husband. who passed away while planning her funeral.
Sometimes life hits too hard
Gives us more than we can bear
The faith, love, and hope found in this world
Was shattered and broken.
She went to work that day
Preparing for the school year to end
But what ended that day
Was more somber
More precious.
When trouble came, she tried to protect them
As if they were her own
Because they were her own
She’d taught them
Nurtured them
Scolded and loved them.
But she couldn’t stop it
The senseless violence
The wanton, capricious taking of life
She and her colleague
And nineteen precious little souls
Sacrificed on the altar of rugged individualism.
We cannot comprehend
Unless we were in his shoes
The sadness, the loss
The grief and the sorrow
An unending night
A darker tomorrow.
As he was planning her memorial
It became too much
A broken heart shattered under the strain
And then, he too
Was gone.
Now, they are together again
With the little children she taught so well
And the things of this world are hopefully dim
They are free from the horror
But we are not
It will happen again
And again
And again.
Until we love our children more than imaginary freedom.
More than we love weapons of mass destruction
More than we love illusions of safety and power
More than we love the Constitution
More than we love the power of the gun.