Drive to work – familiar road <br />Five days a week - the usual route <br />Today is different dude <br />A sight leaves me mute <br /> <br />Traffic light turns Red <br />Vehicles screeching to a halt ahead <br />Waiting patiently for the Green signal <br />Wanting to race past this muddle <br /> <br />Few seconds – knock on my window <br />Two little palms and a tiny shadow <br />Two painful eyes filled with sorrow <br />A six year old, forced to grow <br /> <br />A bunch of roses in one hand <br />A bag of books hanging behind <br />Asking me to please be kind <br />Spare a few pennies for her merchandise <br /> <br />At six she ought to be at school <br />Not at a street corner or a traffic pool <br />Never sympathize or give her a coin <br />Yes, she needs your help, but not with a Dime <br /> <br />Children being forced to grow <br />Bring in money – beg, steal or borrow <br />She was just one among many <br />You and I witness and feel sorry <br />We pay or buy their wares worth only a penny <br />Washing our guilt – seems very easy <br /> <br />Guilty we are in our own way <br />Hope we can some day <br />Be proud and say <br />Our children are no more prey <br />To this dreadful crime that we hope is not here to stay.<br /><br />Girija Menon<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/only-play-no-work/
