The Toy Gun
Is it any wonder, that boys like to play with a gun,
Starting with a toy — after all, it’s made to look like fun.
All those shoot-’em-up movies, and those computer games too,
That eventually — for many — real life drama — leads to.
Yes, first they’re given a toy, then along comes a BB gun;
Some graduate, you see, take pot-shots at creatures for fun.
After that, other things can follow, often disastrously,
Hence those tragedies witnessed, or seen and heard on TV.
Who’s to blame? Mums and dads? Uncles and aunts? Family, friends?
After all, giving a boy a gun, some sort of signal sends.
“Here, son, I’ve a gun for you, just like the real thing — enjoy,”
And once again, the eyes light up, in another young boy.
Who lets them watch those movies, they see via the TV screen,
Where violence is common, and where guns are often seen?
And who sits there beside them, just lapping it all up too,
Puzzled by the crime rate and why things are going askew?
You hear folk say, “It’s just a toy,” which really baffles me,
Because anyone can see, it’s imitation weaponry.
“Here, son, I’ve a gun for you, just like the real thing — enjoy,”
And enjoy it they do — pretending to kill — with that “toy.”
Oh, and how that fire is fueled, by a father’s love of guns;
A sorry love affair — that often — in families runs.
“Wow! I killed my first deer,” or other, someone’s son shouts proudly,
And there you have it — love for killing — blighting a family.
And often, it starts with that toy, so thoughtlessly given,
That many a son — into the arms of the law — has driven.
Yes, first it’s a toy, next a deer, then a human — then jail.
Why? Because a taste for killing was fueled, in some young male.
