each babe wakes to earths new dawn, <br />mistaking new for what is worn, <br />futures cast before they're born. <br /> <br />childhood cheer renews life's sheen, <br />repainting vistas last past seen, <br />brightens futures grey cast screen. <br /> <br />childhood cheer gives way to teen, <br />early brightness now unseen, <br />noon sun slides to evenings scene. <br /> <br />adults wallow in the past, <br />spying dusk - horizon sat, <br />futures span is failing fast. <br /> <br />the current moment caught at last, <br />the future spent, the past fades fast, <br />no escape from deaths grim grasp.<br /><br />Christopher Withers<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/dawns-decay/
