By Mark Sylvester
That young man with the gun
is a misguided missile.
Can reason reach him
before disaster strikes?
Who will smother that flame
that fuels his madness?
Who’s to discern his way
before he grabs his next prey?
That young man with the gun was that same boy
whose charms bewitched penance;
who pulled himself up
by another boy’s bootstrap,
who despises rules and defies correction.
That young man with the gun
is your son,
is my nephew,
is our neighbor
who regards neither friend nor family.
Who will steer him clear of prison
or the cemetery!
It is time for concerned parties to band together to conteract this scourge in our midst. I feel for the many parents who have sons on any side of the gun divide.