🏆 I Want to Teach the Children

         I Want to Teach the Children


I'm trying to think of a word
         I'm sure this has happened to you
Something that expresses a feeling
         blending joy, warmth, and virtue

I want to teach the children
         that feeling I get each time
A tiny kind deed pops into my head
         a moment that's quite sublime

They see when a driver cuts me off
         and I'm tempted to retaliate
They see some trash drop from my grip
         and I pause deciding its fate

I want them to feel the warmth within
         When holding a door open wide
When letting another driver merge ahead
         Or forgiving one who has lied

It's hard for them not to think "Me first"
         to put others ahead of ol' number one
If they witness this over and over
         I trust half the battle is won

Over time they'll see how the glow
         remains after giving anonymous gifts
No matter who, no matter how small
         they'll see how giving uplifts

Of course they'll see my weaknesses
         and mistakes I'm sure to regret
The contrast I believe will speak loudest
         as positives offset

We teach them by example
         but also with great praise
Kind gestures toward strangers
         they'll learn that each one pays

They may receive a sincere 'thank you'
         expecting nothing they may earn smile
And soon they'll seek out chances
         to go the extra mile

Perhaps they'll be able help me
         Perhaps they will think of a word
to encapsulate this feeling
         causing lives to be altered




40 lines

Selected to be featured on W.Com's Newsfeed to Celebrate Poetry Month with the Community during April 2019
Nominated by 🌖 HuntersMoon
will be posted April 3, 2019
image purchased from: 123rf.com

Third Place - The Newbies + Open Poetry Contest - Round 30 - March 2019 🏆

Created for "The Writer's Cramp" Contest
due 1/2/19
Prompt: Get inspired by this quote and write a short story or poem. (You do not have to use the quote in the writing - just get inspired by it).
"You can't live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you." - - John Wooden

- - Later submitted to:
"The Newbies + Open Poetry Contest" (Round 30) for February 2019
"Invalid Item" 
Third Place Winner





additional stanzas I did not include:

One day she returned a lost purse
and made a young mother cry
One day he bagged toys for the needy
extras chosen from his large supply

I heard she cornered a bully
who then left that victim alone
Another helped calm some loose dogs
keeping them safe and getting them back home

I watched in awe as he picked up from the floor
items he had not dropped himself
I watched and smiled in the grocery store
when she put fallen items up on the shelf