L Milton Hankins Poet Rondeau Redouble

I Walk Through Shadow

I walk through shadow, my head bowed low
Thoughts of children suffering from hunger pangs,
Little tots that circumstances won’t allow to grow
In faraway, desolate lands where it seldom rains.

With the world’s wealth, what is it that constrains
Our realizing the depth of despair of dying slow,
For lack of the necessities of life:  water, grain
I walk through shadow, my head bowed low.

Surely with all our knowledge, we ought to know
What to do to fertilize those stretches of dry plain,
The power of an ounce of compassion can show
Thoughts of children suffering from hunger pangs.

Ponder the petty conditions that make us complain
Most of us never feel life in our arms ebb and flow,
Or experience dire hardships only nature explains
Little tots that circumstances won’t allow to grow.

I have been to countries where the dry winds blow
Daily subsistence is more crucial than who reigns,
Owning a sparse-producing land that one can hoe
In faraway, desolate lands where it seldom rains.

From our abundance enough their lives to sustain
Enough of our surplus to relieve some of their woe,
Giving them the knowledge so they can maintain
As a result, a blessing to see their faces glow,
I walk through shadow. 

Written November 23, 2022

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Bill Baker November 23, 2022 at 4:23 PM Powerful, humane poetry, my friend. No one should have to starve to death in this day and time. Bill L Milton Hankins November 23, 2022 at 6:43 PM I can't believe anyone in the whole wide world could disagree with this, Bill. Thanks so much for your thoughtful comment.

Ann Peck November 23, 2022 at 1:12 PM Your poem is very loving, Milton. It is sad that we have children hungry, even in the United States; children whose parents can't afford medical care or medicines, a pair of shoes, warm blanket. It should not be this way! Thanks for writing about the sadness in this world. L Milton Hankins November 23, 2022 at 6:44 PM This is, unfortunately, true, Ann. Poverty and hunger is a worldwide problem that we have the resources to solve ... just not the will, I'm afraid.

Jenna Logan November 23, 2022 at 12:39 PM Seeing the sorrowful faces of children in third world countries is heartbreaking. Far be it for me to suggest birth control as a solution in addition to the need for healthy food but bringing children into the world under such circumstances is worth the thought. Your write is tenderly caring, Milt. L Milton Hankins November 23, 2022 at 12:59 PM Jenna, I believe birth control is an important solution to the problem, but many of these people have no knowledge of such things. Many of them live very primitively. I was amazed at their lack of understanding of some simple concepts like "an apartment building" or "a grocery store." When I mentioned the "stock market," my interpreter had no idea what I was talking about, and it was hard to explain it to him.