CIVILIZATION
Posted: December 13th, 2010, 6:30 pm
His, among the best of all good families,
well-to-do; Sundays seen, black-groomed, in church.
Cried little as a child and climbed to bed,
without protest, when told. Say that obedient
and believing best describe the growing lad.
Top of the list, prep school and university;
studied well–in Romance languages and art
excelled. Then. Then his father’s generation
agreed on war, and, told its cause was just
went off to learn strange skills in weaponry
and on the killing fields outdo the rest
in slaughtering his lesser fellow men.
At last, with early hints of silver in his locks,
came home, with medals and with honor, in a box.
Jim 6/21/09
Is "civilization" an oxymoron?
well-to-do; Sundays seen, black-groomed, in church.
Cried little as a child and climbed to bed,
without protest, when told. Say that obedient
and believing best describe the growing lad.
Top of the list, prep school and university;
studied well–in Romance languages and art
excelled. Then. Then his father’s generation
agreed on war, and, told its cause was just
went off to learn strange skills in weaponry
and on the killing fields outdo the rest
in slaughtering his lesser fellow men.
At last, with early hints of silver in his locks,
came home, with medals and with honor, in a box.
Jim 6/21/09
Is "civilization" an oxymoron?