They Seeded Our Future

 

Then the rains blew through but not for us

The earth cracked and paled and loosened

We waited, watched and figured unjust

 

The winds came and lifted the dirt

The sky was dark the sun didn’t show

The air was thick and stinging it hurt

 

The tenuous hold of prosperity our land

Banks know but not care of soil no longer

Time to leave and escape this desert sand

 

In bucking junk of a truck, lucky ones leave

Others walk or hitch or rail must ride

To a paradise, a promised land of lush and leaf

 

The road is hard, some will fail, others die

There is no certainty only hope to drive us on

No one looks back just move, shrug and sigh

 

Millions of others too demand a chance

Just like we, need a place to work and earn

A place to teach, learn and even to dance

 

But sorrow and difficulty like never before

The fields are controlled and pay is meager

We buy what we can from company store

 

Hunger is everyday, this migrant life of hell

Organize for safety and wages if you can

Survive beatings, floods and keep children well

 

We are needed soon, a call to action bell doth toll

We will rise up above for a world’s higher cause

We will feed each other, give sustenance to the soul

 

We are a precursor to a fairer world, a better life

One which we and our children must earn

With blood, sweat, incredible toil and strife

 

Inspired by the Grapes of Wrath