Shelter

I grew up sheltered
I didn’t know
We weren’t rich
There were toys Santa “couldn’t afford”
But we had dinner every night
And never worried that we wouldn’t
I didn’t realize
Not fully
That others had hunger
And safety
Weighing on their mind
And part of the nasty business of adulthood
Has been learning
That the world is much more cruel and horrible
Than I ever imagined
There is beauty and love, to be sure
Lots of that
But so much of it is off limits
To those whose minds were ruthlessly shaped
To prioritize brute survival
At all costs
How can I blame them
Children cannot be held responsible
For what adults do to them
And when life punches my jaw
Knocks the floor out from beneath my feet
Leaving me breathless and confused
And I cry out
For shelter
The ones who never had it scoff
Shelter?
You expect shelter?
There is no shelter here
Didn’t you know?
And perhaps
With four decades behind me
I ought to
But I still believe
For reasons opaque to too many
That there should be
Maybe that’s my weakness
It has certainly been exploited enough
And maybe my conditions for an acceptable society
Are unrealistic as a result
Yet I wonder
If shelter can exist for one
Why not for all?
If peace can be had for the few
Why not for the rest?
And if suffering was your lot
Would you not wish better for your children?
There is a choice
A fundamental one
In which we either toughen our young ones up
For a world that is cruel
Or we enable them
To make it less so
Which requires arming them with compassion
Empathy
Fairness
And I understand
That these are the exact targets the sharks use
To take their potshots
To keep the crabs down in the bucket
I know it too well by now
But goddammit
If I must fight
Then I will fight for shelter
Not only for me
But for everyone who needs it
If you can build your own, fine
Just know that not everyone can
And that helping is not hurting
No matter what you’ve been told
By those who stand to benefit most
From your callousness
You say the world is cruel
And I agree
But at this point
The ones keeping it so
Are you and me

There is shelter here
If we build it
Together