Before There Were Sidewalks

There is a tendency in our grown up world to pander primarily to adults. It occurs to me today that some of my favorite friends are children and they receive a very small amount of my attention. So today’s poem is for the kids, for your kids as well. This simple story explores the way in which society and our surroundings are in a constant state of change. Some folks talk endlessly about the way things used to be. Others think only of the here and now and some are always looking towards the future. The only thing we can be sure of is that things will change. If we understand that one fact, we have taken the first step towards being prepared for whatever will come. When we wonder about what came before we open the door to dreaming of what is yet to come. And so it goes. Hope this one gets your gears turning.

Before There Were Sidewalks
Before there were sidewalks
To roller skate on
There were board walks of wood
But now those are gone
And before there were board walks
They just walked in the street
Back when streets were all muddy
And not very neat
Before there were streets
Or towns here at all
There were just plain dirt roads
That were dusty and small
And before there were roads
That criss-crossed the lands
There were just pony trails
Made by Indian bands
And way back before that
Before people came here
There were only the paths
Left by foxes and deer
There were only the mountains
And meadows and trees
The soft sounds of nature
And tall grass in the breeze
And that's how it was
Back before people came
The land never changed
Things were always the same
But now there are sidewalks
To roller skate on
I wonder if the sidewalks
Will ever be gone?
By Frank Carpenter ©