A Long Time Ago

Deep in the black wilderness of countless stars and endless expanse
Hidden in the cold, desolate depths of nothing, and lost in forever
We come into being for such a brief moment, bedazzled and perplexed
Bowled over by the apparent insignificance of our lives
Yet struck by the immediacy and potency of our passions

We wrestle with the nature of our existence
Hoping to find an answer that can reconcile the tensions and contradictions
Inherent to our predicament

Upon the generations of war and plight and famine
Some of us were fortunate to be born into relative security
With food to eat and shelters above our heads

But still the battle rages on all around us
The struggle for meaning and for comfort
The search for purpose and for glory
On this spinning top of a world we call home

Soon enough it becomes painfully clear that not everyone has our best interests at heart
There are those among us who will take whatever they can just to get by, or so they'd say
Fueling the bottomless pit of their insatiable desires

Building upon the age-old legacy of cynical competitiveness
They do nothing to elevate the name of humanity beyond the limited constraints
Of animalistic, primitive tribalism

Carnivorous and conniving, our fellow men muse endlessly at their own inventions
And relish in the appetites they inherited from the flame

A solitary prayer is cast out into the deep abyss
A hopeful wish that we will not be judged by our weakest link
But rather by the strength of our conviction

To overcome the base nature of our origin
And rise up to meet the challenge
To grow and to live united, together

And bound by a common goal
To secure livelihood for all women, children, and men
So that none live in poverty
And all come to know the promise of self-actualization
In a world so full of pain

But still the stars flicker mindlessly above
Indifferent to the prayer that hangs over our heads, like a fishing net
Just waiting to catch any and all opportunities for providence
That may fall from the heavens on high

We work and we toil, beneath this net of hope
Mending it and repairing it, generation after generation
While others seek to tear it down and sell it out
For spare parts and traps for the innocent

Will we ever come to know the reality of egalitarian living?
Why should we accept a system that places the luck of few before the needs of many?
And should it come as any surprise that the skies are empty
And no one wants to visit the land where money reigns with absolute resolve
To keep the masses fat and enslaved to the whims of the corporate elite?

I believe that we are rapidly approaching a revolution
The likes of which have never been seen before
When children lead and resources are shared with all by all
To finally live up to our basic creed that each is created an equal part
Deserving of a fair shot at life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

Our private lives are no longer our own
Our data is bought and sold
But what the world needs now is a collective vision of kindness and generosity
A trust and compassion that's reinforced to repeal the divisions imposed on us
By lowly leaders who profit when ordinary people, like you and me
Are sorely misinformed

The potential effort of average human beings is enough to
Topple the power structures of old and build a new world
Where the prayer we send out is backed by a reality of moral and ethical justice

One day our net of hope will catch the fallen stars
And our wish for brighter days will ring true throughout all lands

We will come to see that although we may be sequestered to a remote corner
Of an infinitely vast universe, we are not alone
For we have each other
And that should be enough for now