I hear the crying of the hungry
In the deserts where they're wandering
Hear them crying out for Heaven's own
Benevolence upon them
Hear destructive power prevailing
I hear fools falsely hailing
To the crooked wits of tyrants when they call

I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear them all

I hear the sounds of tearing pages
And the roar of burning paper
All the crimes in acquisition
Turn to air and ash and vapor
And the rattle of the shackle
Far beyond emancipators
And the loneliest who gather in their stalls

I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear them all

So, while you sit and whistle Dixie
With your money and your power
I can hear the flowers a-growing
In the rubble of the towers
I hear leaders quit their lyin'
I hear babies quit their cryin'
I hear soldiers quit their dyin', one and all

I hear them all
I hear them all
I hear them all

I hear the tender words from Zion
I hear Noah's waterfall
Hear the gentle lamb of Judah
Sleeping at the feet of Buddha
And the prophets from Elijah
To the old Paiute Wovoka
Take their places at the table when they're called

I hear them all

~~~~~

It is a distressing emotion when we can do nothing but sit and watch while others suffer. It makes us feel so helpless, and we long to do something meaningful, to make an impact, but we struggle with finding ways to do so. There are people who go to sleep hungry every single night in other parts of the world, while we sit and argue with our families which restaurant we should eat at that night. There are wars--some big, some small--taking place all over the world, while we get into petty fights with friends and family over silly things. There are leaders of our country and of other nations who are nothing but greedy, money-lovers, who conspire against our civilization every day. Babies and young children and women being abused, beaten, molested, raped. There are strong, brave men out there fighting for our country. Why are we all so unaware of this? There is so much pain and ugliness in our world. It is going downhill, I tell you. We are so wrapped up in our own little microcosm that we call 'life,' but it is nothing compared to what life is really all about. And why is it that when we do become aware of these things, we frown and say "that's too bad," and go on with our lives? We might stop and feel sad for a moment, sometimes longer, but eventually we move on. Sometimes, we want to help, we want to change the way things are, and we want to do say or do something to phenomenally influence another person's life. We explore the options of what we could do, but when nothing is relevant enough, when nothing is simple enough, when nothing is convenient enough...we just give up. Now, how pitiful is that? Tell me, what is it you hear? Do you hear them all, or does it go through on ear and out the other?