Protest Ballad

This poem was written for the St. Charles Writers Group topic “Carpe Diem!” on February 22, 2025.

I wanted to write a protest song
for this age of America we find ourselves in
with headlines shouting all that’s wrong
and our hopes worn utterly thin.

But I found myself procrastinating—
Who am I to rally the troops?—
when everything seems exacerbating,
stuck in an endless doom loop.

I feel as dejected as anyone
though everyday I rouse myself from bed,
look after my children, breathe, get work done,
find gratitude, make art, clear my head.

That is how we’ll steady our will:
by focusing on what we can control.
Be kind, help others, push back against evil—
for alone we are one, but together we’re whole.

While we live we must seize each day,
not let the shadow of power dim our light.
So in the end, our spirits will say,
I held strong and helped win the good fight.