RUBE

RUBE

There was a time when innocence

was held and seen

through rose colored glasses.

Rube definition according to Webster: awkward unsophisticated person

Unsophisticated definition according to Webster: unchanged, uncorrupted

I used to be an awkward unsophisticated person

Life seen through rose colored glasses

Each fragment, a part of a whole

Each whole of a part of more that I could ever imagine

Always living a “daisy” type of life and attitude

You know the one where

each petal grows from a circular and centered beginning

Love regardless of hate would always win

Renewal regardless of destruction grew despite the odds

Hope in the unseen carried always by faith

A purpose filled passing to others

to never give into change that tarnishes and discolors the vision seen.

Yet today…an adult

I know this….

I was changed along the way

corrupted, I guess.

It’s a struggle to remain unchanged and uncorrupted enough

to still see hope-filled daisies through rose colored glasses.

I weep for the children who have the right to grow and be an awkward unsophisticated person.

Earlier this week, a discussion about the “heart of a child” was had. Children love unconditionally, running to us with open arms and trust. Their emotions are out in the open. They laugh, they cry, they create, they explore, they share, they voice their needs, yet somewhere along the way, that changes.

***I remember what caused me to write this poem…a sad day as an educator knowing that a child had been forced to grow up way too early. I removed my rose colored glasses that day and I’m not sure I’ve put them back on since.