Please Mr. President. This Is a Plea. A Hope. A Wish.
This is a plea for change in light of the Las Vegas tragedy. A generation is growing up watching as horrific events become more frequent. These tragedies have taken too many people and affected so many more.
This poem for the president is from an 18-year-old John Hersey High School graduate who doesn't want to live in fear anymore.
Please Mr. President.
this is a plea. a hope. a wish
we rise each morning
Americans in every city
the newspapers scream
black headlines
thousands of letters smashed together
forming sentences of horror
deaths and injuries
numbers. numbers.
but these aren't numbers.
these are people.
people we cannot replace
people we never should have lost
people with families, friends, jobs
Please Mr. President.
we have so much ahead of us
our flag of red, white, and blue
our people embody this spirit
we are a land of wonderful opportunity
innovation, creativity, power
but how can this continue
we cannot be our best living in fear
fear that manifests itself in the unexpected
fear that turns to disbelief and regret
Please Mr. President.
these tragic events are far too frequent
something must be done
there's hesitancy now
a foreboding sense of caution
we don't know what is coming
I can remember
a different time
people didn't worry about movie theaters
malls. big cities. school. concerts.
that's different now.
but it doesn't have to be.
Please Mr. President
there are little kids growing up
protected for now by innocence
each proud to be American
but children are wise and wondering
they ask questions
parents fumble for an answer
they shouldn't have to taint young minds
with horrors such as these
Please Mr. President
this is a plea. a hope. a wish.
something must be done
these aren't numbers
these are people.
Emily Dattilo, of Arlington Heights, is a freshman at Miami University of Ohio in Oxford, Ohio, studying psychology and English. This poem previously appeared in The New York Times on Oct. 3.