Listen to the Kids – A Poem

It’s not the first heartbreak
It’s the first knee scrape

Not graduation day,
But kindergarten picture day

We’re failing the children, the babies, the kids
And they’re growing up into lost misguided shits

That’s right, I’m talking about you and me
We are a wreck, assholes, or both almost guaranteed

I don’t know anyone who isn’t either dealing with their mental health chronically
Or wearing a maga hat unironicaly

But we can change this, it can be fixed
It’s not even that hard, the problem is this

For too long we have taught children to be quiet
Hoping for most of them to listen and be compliant

I’m here to tell you we have it wrong
The answer has been children all along

It’s time for them to speak up and us to listen
Every parent, teacher, doctor and politician

Sit your ass down the kids need to speak
And you haven’t been hearing them, now their future is meek

If you ask the kids, they want time with their parents to play
That means fair pay and shorter work days

They want to be healthy mentally and physically
And they have like $5 from grams so figure out the whole bill, single payer, fiscally

Even the teeth.
You weird bone thieves.

They want all school to be fair and free
So send Betsy Devos to the bottom of the sea

They want to feel safe anywhere they go
So work on some real reformed gun control

They want to be listned to, they want to feel heard
So shut all your mouths and let them get in a word

Special thanks to LA for lines like “bone thieves” and “send her to the bottom of the sea”

-DQ