The Child Is Not the Man

 

 

 

“He won’t be any better,

He will be just like his dad.”

And the way in which it was said

You know his dad was bad.

 

But alas, the prediction failed,

He was nothing like his dad

And even the ones that predicted ill,

They were also glad.

 

The reverse was also true

But still a difference in the trend:

A child who had a good father

Still found the druggies’ den.

 

The child is not the man:

This needs to be emphasized

And what is always expected

Is not always realized.

 

I have a very good friend

Who, as a child, was quite disgusting

But throughout his adult life

His achievements are amazing.

 

I would not take the time now

To spell out those achievements

But suffice it to be said,

Absent is that disgusting intent.

 

He is often misunderstood

And I think in some cases envied,

Some appear somewhat mystified

At their unfulfilled prophecies. 

 

The man these “seers” expected

That child has never become

Instead, contrary to their predictions,

He became a profitable son.

 

Many have known the child

But the man they do not know,

He does not fit in to their category

Re: the phrase “I told you so”.

 

For had he continued on the path

He trod in his childhood days

These “seers” would feel vindicated

In predicting another stray.

 

I once stood in his defense

On an occasion he was castigated,

The information that was relayed

Was clearly fabricated.

 

 

“You don’t know the man!”

Was my unreserved reprimand

For many may have known the child

But they do not know the man.

 

The man projected in the child

Is not the man the “seers” see

And they are extremely mystified

In the man he turned out to be.

 

As an educator for four decades

I have seen it go both ways:

Starting out bad becoming good

Or the good becoming strays.

 

For me the consolation is:

The former out numbers the latter

For when the good becomes the stray

For society, this is a grave matter.

 

 

The child is not the man

However good or bad a child he be,

And when all is said and done

We can only wait and see.

 

Stewart Russell © May 26, 2021

 

Better than the Worst

Said the man with no feet

To the man with no shoes,

“I’d rather have your problem

Than have mine,” he mused.

Said the homeless man

To the disgruntled homeowner,

“You have a roof above your head,

I am still awaiting a donor.”

Said the pedestrian to the motorist,

“How dare you fret

When the traffic is heavy?

Don’t you see I’m getting wet?

Are you having a migraine?

It’s because you have a head,

Charles the first lost his

And guess what!  He is dead.

Said the frog to the boys,

“What’s fun for you is death to me.”

Said the blind to the bespectacled,

“Even with glasses I still won’t see.”

Said the incarcerated to the free

“You think you are in prison

Yet you go and come as you please,

Would you care to exchange problems?”

Said the old lady to the young,

“As you are I have been

But it’s taking you a shorter time

To get to my scene.”

“The child is the father of the man”

That can also hold for old age

But when they become old together

Then age is not a stage.

Said the child to the orphan,

“My parents are much too strict.”

Said the orphan to the child,

“Tell me when you are ready to switch.”

  

Said the mistress to the servant,

“Good help is hard to come by.”

Said the servant to the mistress,

“You are so right,” and then sighed.

“Choosing a dress to wear,” one said,

“Can be such a headache.”

“No such problem, “ said another

“Until my one is dry, I’ll wait.”

“If that child would just shut up

I could have some sleep.”

“Tell that to her dead mother

If she and you ever meet.

“My money’s not enough,” said a man

“I am out of money,” said another

“I don’t have a job,” said a third

Compared to invalidity the others are better.

Whatever your present situation

Somebody else is worse,

Being better than the worst person

Says that you are not the worst.

You are between where you were

And where you want to get,

Hence you are better than the worst

For you haven’t reached the worst yet.

Stewart Russell © February 2019

The Myriad Minds

Some people have five minds

Some only have one,

Some can’t make up theirs

Others use only brawn.

Some leave theirs lying around

That’s how it seems to me,

Others think the weirdest things

That’s insanity.

Some think mostly evil

Others thing mostly good,

Most are in between these two

And think mostly as they should.

Some minds are overloaded

Like a computer hard drive

Thinking mostly about themselves

And how to cut and contrive.

Some are recycle bins

And are often filled to the brim,

Never a time to empty

And the stench is awful within.

Some are shrewd and cunning

Conniving to say the least,

Plotting another’s downfall

And the disruption of his peace.

Some are great repositories

Of ideas and positive thoughts

From which many will benefit

When such information is sought.

Some minds are evil bent

And full of devilish vice,

Such are crafty minds and devious

Which think about nothing nice.

Some minds are inquiring

Always seeking to understand

What the Word says about God

And about His redemptive plan.

  

Some minds are creative

Blessed with making life better,

Such are often Spirit led

And ought to be the trend setters.

Some minds need a little fixing

They are always under stress,

And even the simplest task

Becomes an unreasonable test.

Such are the vagaries of the mind

So difficult to comprehend,

From the Professor at University

To the child that plays “Let’s pretend.”

Stewart Russell © March 2018