The Message

The phone, it kept on ringing
But no one heard a sound
For on this day, a family died
There were bodies strewn around

The silence it was deafening
The air was thick with doom
The clock ticked on as usual
There was no life in the room

The killer was a thief at heart
He had never killed before
But this time, he felt forced to shoot
As they came in through the door

The dad was an accountant
The mom, she stayed at home
To raise her two small children
The job was hers and hers alone

If only they had not come home
Until he stole and fled
If only things had not gone on
That left them all for dead

This family hardly felt much pain
The bullets flew so fast
But there they stood on this dark day
Their fates already cast

Finger prints were everywhere
A bloody footprint on some pants
He left so much of him behind
That he never stood much chance

By noon the cops surrounded
The house and nearby land
The neighbors came for comfort
And stood there, hand in hand

A murder in a town so small
Had baffled, shocked and stunned
To wipe out a whole family
To kill them with a gun

It made no sense to anyone
To kill them how he did
To prey upon such goodness
Especially in those kids

When family members heard the news
They started to arrive
And begged to see their loved ones
Hoping someone had survived

The grandpa of those two small forms
Marched right on past a cop
He burst in through the open door
He was impossible to stop

That big old man dropped to his knees
And as tears began to flow
He gently brushed their tiny arms
They were far too young to go

A service three days later
Helped a town to say goodbye
To honor a whole family
To bow their heads and cry

At that same time, a man was caught
Attempting to steal beer
The owner held him for the cops
In his eyes was abject fear

He knew his days were numbered
For surely they would know
That it was he who killed those four
He had nowhere he could go

This man who once was a mere boy
Whose mommy rocked and fed
Was now a wanted criminal
What happened in his head?

We ask ourselves how can this be
What turns someone to crime
How does one go from boy to this
And end up doing time

It makes no sense to most of us
But you only need to see
That mankind does this to itself
It’s not where it’s supposed to be

We all start out with playing cards
The playing cards of life
But some receive a tainted deck
Filled with dark and pain and strife

It’s how we choose to play the game
Regardless how it’s stacked
It’s up to us to choose a path
Straight ahead instead of back

This family did not have to die
Nor ones like it today
If only we would think a bit
And choose a better way

To all of us, no matter where
A message here we call
Do unto others, as you would want
Our earth is shared by all