Yesterday was their time. <br />some conquered <br />And got to the upper echelon of society. <br />Others got conquered <br />And went down the abyss of destruction. <br />That man created nations, <br />The other destroyed nations. <br />By that woman many generations were raised, <br />By the other many went down the drain. <br />Yet they are all our predecessors. <br />The shadows of yester-year. <br />We can not vilify them until we have lived it. <br /> <br />So soon the stage lights have flashed on us. <br />In the green light you and I stand, <br />Engulfed by the dilemma of living-dying, <br />The tangled mess of running-falling, <br />The puzzle of laughing-crying, <br />To act our own lives <br />And mock the folly of the inevitable. <br /> <br />This is certainly our here and now. <br />Our only time to be young. <br />Our season of joy and cheer. <br />Our only chance to listen and learn. <br />Our only opportunity to conquer. <br />It is as well our time of greatest vulnerability. <br /> <br />We are passing away. <br />We shall soon fade out. <br />But our foot prints shall trail us, <br />Our indelible selves. <br /> <br />From afar I hear a voice <br />Bearing both praises and persecutions. <br />Praises for them that made us. <br />Persecutions for them that failed us. <br /> <br />Now destiny is at our mercy. <br />It is ours to choose. <br />The building team or <br />The demolishing team. <br />The nation makers or <br />The nation wreckers. <br />The heroes or <br />The villains.<br /><br />Eric Zinbabora Batung<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/heroes-and-villians/
