Nikki Giovanni: "Always There Are The Children"

Having been a fan of Nikki Giovanni (originally from Ohio) for many years and sharing some common friends, I often feel compelled to share one of her poems. You may remember her stirring recital of "We Are The Hokies" after the killings at Virginia Tech.

Always There Are The Children

and always there are the children

there will be children in the heat of day

there will be children in the cold of winter

children like a quilted blanket

are welcomed in our old age

children like a block of ice to a desert sheik

are signs of status in our youth

we feed the children with our culture

that they might understand our travail

we nourish the children on our gods

that they may understand respect

we urge the children on the tracks

that our race will not fall short

but our children are not ours

nor we theirs they are future we are past

how do we welcome the future

not with the colonialism of the past

for that is our problem

not with the racism of the past

for that is their problem

not with the fears of our own status

for history is lived not dictated

we welcome the young of all groups

as our own with the solid nourishment

of food and warmth

we prepare the way with the solid

nourishment of self-actualization

we implore all the young to prepare for the young

because always there will be children.

My favorite line: "history is lived not dictated"