A Poem for Newtown

A Poem for Newtown
By Delroy Nesta Williams and Anique Cuffy


Just got shot and killed
They told me I'm heading to heaven
But why did this happen to me?
I'm only seven
Barely seen much since kindergarten
I'm supposed to be in school
Learning Science and History
Now I'm the one who's history
I hope though that my death doesn't cause too much misery
But is instead a lesson
And the reason that the world changes direction
Why the need for guns?
One minute I'm laughing with my friends
The next my life has come to an end
I didn't even get a chance to say a prayer
Because the Lord wasn't welcomed here
Not within the walls of my school
But now everyone's praying to the Lord to comfort my family
Something's wrong with this picture, seriously!
How do they expect me to rest in peace?
When the last thing I heard was gun shots and screams
Held my best friends hand as our lives ended in misery
And the saddest thing is the reason for our death will always remain a mystery
Our souls went into evanescence
While our bodies just laid there lifeless
So many gun shots wounds to our heads and chests
Can we even have an open casket?
Our right to live was taken from us
All our dreams crushed until they turned to dust
And soon all memories of us will be like scrap metal in a landfill
Just waiting to rust
Yes, we’ll rest but we’ll never be at peace
We’ll sit with the Master and with angels up high
And look down and say, Lord why do they keep missing the signs?
It’s so clear to see, so easy to read
Why don’t they take heed?
It’s time to take a stand!
Fight for those who don’t have the chance
The little boys and girls just like me
Who are prey to the situations just like these,
Who are just happy to go through life every day,
Not worried about the guns while they play.
Childhood should be a period free from strife
Not afraid or clinging on for dear life
I pray for my family and all the other families
That they, while on earth, will find peace
And they do justice to our memory
Please, just take away all the havoc and mischief
Let God sit in you all hearts
And stop asking why?
What happened to us was just a reminder
That this world is sick, in need of a cure
And God didn’t make it our home forever
And one day this, yes this will all be over
With hearts that a pure
He’ll take us to our true home over yonder
But for now, stop sit and wonder
And start act to bring us justice
The guns, the violence – we’ve got to stop this
We can’t have another Newtown
We can’t have another shootout
We got to change our route
And as a people just accept the truth
That guns in the hand of any and everybody
Is a recipe to kill anybody
Even the little children, the innocent boys and girls
We’re killing off the future of this world…