DAY 6 – A FUTURE NO ONE WANTS

I am sitting on a park bench watching children play. An elderly woman sits down next to me and starts talking to me about children and their futures.

Look around your neighborhood and you see very young children just being children. You may see yourself and your childhood friends in them. While each of us at one point in time was a one year old, two year old as well as three, four and five year old, our loving parents never wanted their children to have a future filled with unwanted difficulties.

When you see a three year old laughing with his or her friends do you see that child someday getting hooked on alcohol or drugs and have an addiction that gets out of control. Do you see that child having an eating disorder that ruins his or her life. Unfortunately for some young children that may be the future that awaits them.

When you see a cute little child sitting in a restaurant with his or her parents do you envision that child growing up and becoming a rapist or a cold blooded killer or the victim of those horrific acts. Unfortunately for some young children that may be their future as perpetrator or victim.

When you see a four year old playing on a swing do you see that child becoming an adult who verbally abuses his or her spouse as well as his or her children. Do you see five year old boys and girls sitting at their desks in school who may someday take a gun and shoot their fellow classmates or fire randomly into a group of people just standing at a corner. Unfortunately for some young children that may be their future as perpetrator or victim.

When you see a group of seven year old kids playing soccer in a field do you see those kids someday developing animosity, hatred, bigotry and general disdain towards people who belong to a different nationality, religion, race, ethnicity or sexual orientation than themselves. Do you see those kids in the future inflicting physical pain and psychological distress upon those who are different with complete disregard for their welfare. Unfortunately for some that may be their future as perpetrator or victim of discrimination.

When you see a newborn baby in a small village in an underdeveloped nation do you see that child continuing to grow up without nutritious food to eat, a decent home to live in, indoor plumbing that brings them clean water and electricity that lights their homes and neighborhoods. Unfortunately for some that may be their future that lasts a lifetime.

When you see children of any age asleep in their beds or walking around town do you see that child someday shooting or bombing others or becoming the casualty of those horrendous acts when their nation or group they belong to are at war. Unfortunately for some that may be their future as perpetrator or victim of such violence.

When you see a little boy or girl crawling on the floor do you see a child who grows up with health problems because of a lifetime of not eating nutritious food and a lack of exercise. Do you see that child failing in school and not receiving a high school diploma. Unfortunately for some that may be the future that awaits them.

When you see a one year old boy or girl taking his or her first steps do you see that child becoming an adult who lacks empathy for their fellow human beings and does not show others enough kindness, consideration and respect. Do you see that boy or girl developing into a person who shows little interest in keeping our earth clean and sustainable. Unfortunately for some a lack of thoughtfulness for others and the earth may be their future.

These and many other potentially problematic scenarios are all too common. They do not happen to everyone but they have been occurring to far too many people in every generation. A future filled with unwanted momentary problems or long lasting difficulties, especially those that are horrific, no parent wants for his or her children and if very young children had the maturity to think about the life they want for themselves they too would never want to be the perpetrator or victim of a more difficult life.

After hearing what this elderly woman had to say I now realize that too many children will grow up to have some aspect of their future not turn out as they would want it to.