In a long ago time when the world was fine and the sun shone every day.

Where the grass grew green and the air blew clean there was always time to play.

Then falls from trees and fresh scraped knees where just one part of life.

As meal times passed we survived the fast untouched by any strife.

When football games were played in frames until dusk wrap it's cloak.

A stick was a gun and we made our fun, just tossing it when it broke.

And a battle or war was for one or more, which could easily last a week

If we got hurt we'd simply dessert or turn the other cheek

And rejected or spurned we soon learned to handle ups and downs.

We quickly found when to stand our ground and when life needed clowns.

If you toed the line everything was fine but expect to know your place.

A clip round the ear was a little boy's fear, so he learned to mind his space.

As time would come when you were the one, the top dog in the pack.

When Nature's Law would then ensure you passed that treatment back.

But we all knew this was way true, it simply, plainly worked.

We had recourse via latent force at any time this irked.

We ground and bumped and kissed and thumped our way through childhood.

So much we didn't know about, so much we understood.

Survived we did, survived we have with all our wicked traits.

Quite well equipped before we're shipped off to those Pearly Gates.

 

 

but what of today's terrors with pale unblemished skin

the chauffeur driven paragons that are our kith and kin

the cosseted and feted ones wrapped up from dawn to dark

who's exposure to adventure is to stroll about the park

with sanitised efficiency they're protected from all harm

a moment's loss of contact now causing us such alarm

when will they learn to work out just what is safe and not

and hone the basic instincts like you and I have got

to deal with tricky people and circumstance alike

develop manipulation and learn just how to psych?

in regulated playgrounds, by single gender rules?

Miss alone is not quipped to arm them with these tools

at 16+ we roll them out, at 18 cut them loose

the leash that once restrained them potentially a noose

and who picks up the pieces of inabilities to cope

of the culture of dependency the guiding light of hope

whilst set against a background of a specious domain

be it State or individual there surely will be pain.