Pray that in our later years
On our bedside table there will be
More books than jars of pills;
Pray that when we dim the light
It is on a world of complex plots
Rather than one of rancour;
Pray that we will still believe
It important that the heroine
Should still marry the hero;
Pray that to our children
We shall still give those books
We ourselves loved when young;
That the dish should still
Run away with the spoon
In an unwise elopement;
That the velveteen rabbit
Will never be made less tragic
By prescription antibiotics;
That pirates will still walk the plank
Rather than be given
The benefit of the doubt;
That at the end of the day
Scout and Jem will still
Be read to by Atticus Finch;
That mice and men
And great white whales
Will frolic in their elements;
Pray for all of that,
And for that device, the book,
Our beloved companion and our friend.