The New Song
Now, Minstrel, those two tunes
are old and yet they run
through my head to madness.
The first goes: "I have mine
where is yours?
If you have not yours
why not?
Lazy and won't work
so you don't deserve.
No excuse for being poor.
Now the more I make
the higher the tide
and you too will rise.
You cost too much eating
out of the public trough.
Safety net is just a hammock
for a lazy bum.
But one more scheme or tax break
and some will filter down to you!
Remember, Greed is good for all of us."
The other song is: "I have mine
so where is theirs?
They are the poor and hungry.
So where is theirs?
Remember they have children
who go to bed hungry.
Their worth is inherent because
they are human beings.
We must feed them
and find them a place to sleep.
To make sure they are cared for
we will help them prey
before they eat.
And tomorrow we will
appoint an adult
to care for them as
they fill out forms.
They need our help and
we are their patrons.
Cost is not an issue.
We can do no less."
Minstrel your two songs;
provide no choices
except to be crushed by greed
or to be drowned with prayer and paper.
Mankind needs above all else
dignity and hope,
and you sing of
shame and despair to all.
The standoff between
these two songs
is a terrible and precarious
balance for our planet.
Minstrel, a new song is needed.
These two are all too old
and have never been pleasant music.
So sing a song across the land
that quotes Spring
and the promise of buds.
There is hope for all of us.
And sing of the stately and dignified tree
that is each of us.
We can have such dignity.
And we can dance to the song
of hope and worth.
Doug Minnis
February 2,2010