Sometimes, as I lay in my bed late at night
I find myself thinking of times yet to come
I’m sure we all do it, though we may try to fight
But my brain wonders “What will my children become?”
I picture their school days, their friends and their lives
All the days when they’re older – when men, fully grown
I imagine their interests, their families and wives
(Though I hope they’ll be happy even if they’re alone)
But as I lay thinking, about my grown boys
I realise, there’s only one thing that they need
Only one thing I hope, that’ll give me such joy
But they’ll only learn this, when they see how we lead
It’s isn’t a ‘life skill’, it’s not ‘be well rounded’
It isn’t a language, a grade or a sport
It isn’t a trick that will leave you dumbfounded
And it certainly isn’t traditionally ‘taught’
It’s something that should help them later in life
When meeting new people, or finding some work
It’ll help them when finding a partner or wife
And ensure people don’t think my sons are both jerks.
Of course, I want both of my boys to do well
I’ll help them to get there however I might
I’ll help them with Maths, and I’ll help them to spell
I’ll give them advice, show them how to do right
But the one thing I want, for both of my sons
The thing that I crave when I look in their eyes
The thing that I desperately hope they’ll become
Is quite simple – I just want my sons to be nice
I want to be sat with my boys at the table
In twenty years time, with their mother and me
We’ll see all our family, whenever we’re able
And I hope that my boys will be good company
It might not be easy – though they’re always a pleasure
And who knows if they’ll get there quickly or not?
But niceness is really quite easy to measure
They’re people we want to spend time with a lot.
So as I lay dozing, as I stare at the ceiling
I plan for the future, both the sunshine and clouds
But thankfully, I’ve got a very good feeling
That both boys will make me incredibly proud
I liked it. It read smooth, made sense, and not a cheesy rhyme in the whole deal. Nice job Henry.
Of course be advised, my poetry experience/knowledge extends no farther than Green Eggs & Ham. So who knows.
I often wonder what the future holds for my boys. I wonder where they will go in life. Like you, my greatest concern is that they find something satisfying and that they are decent people.