23 sorrow song for a new generation

for the eyes of the children,
the last to bleed,
the last to close,
for the crying
eyes of the children, discerning,
the eyes of the children of
columbine,
of virginia tech and sandy hook,
for the eyes of the children
of marjory stoneman douglas,
for the eyes of the children
of uvalde,
for the eyes of the 304 fatal school shootings since 1999,
for asian american and pacific islander eyes, african american eyes,
native american eyes, latino eyes, caucasian eyes,
for all that remains of the children,
their eyes,
imploring us, shocked to notice
the helpless assistance in
powerful men.