Beyond the Blanket

I don't know about the rest of you, but when I was little, I always saw the world and its problems as things that our parents had to deal with. The world was meant for adults, and as children we couldn't even see past the edges of high counters, let alone manage the world's issues.  Being so young, we didn't have responsibilities.  We essentially reported to our superiors, and our superiors governed our lives.  As we grew older we were slowly given more and more things to be responsible of.  First it was dressing ourselves, making our own lunches, then it was driving vehicles and paying for our own things.  But now it is different.  As adults, we are now plunged into an entirely different realm of responsibilities and duties.  Namely, to our families, to our country, and even to the world itself.

When we were children, it wasn't our job to deal with these things. Maybe I took that for granted and started thinking it would never be our job.  But now, suddenly, it is our job.  The world and all of its wars and conflicts are now our burden to bear.  We can't hide under the blanket of childhood carelessness anymore.  Now it is time to grow up; time to emerge.

As we shed the warmth of naivety, the world seems to be a cold and cruel place.  This cannot be the nature of the world.  It is because of the actions of people that the world appears to be this way. It is, sadly, the nature of men toward one another.  And while the duty for our generation to mend this evil has been thrust upon us, we have a choice.  We can cower under our blankets in fear and effectively allow the evil to win, or we can stand up, brace against the cold, and refuse to let it defeat us.