In the words of a famous writer, children are living poems of today

Years ago I bought a box full of books at an auction for $3. Not too many people seemed to be interested in some old books.

One of the books I found in the box was an 1882 household addition of the Poetical Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The old original leather-bound book was very stiff and worn, some of the pages had come loose from the binding and yellowed over time.

When I opened the book I found a poem that had been marked by someone years ago. The poem was entitled "Children" and has since become one of my favorite poems.

The last part of the poem reads:

"For what are all our contrivings, and the wisdom of our books

When compared with your caresses, and the gladness of your looks.

Ye are better than all the ballads. That ever were sung or said

For ye are living poems, and all the rest are dead."

Longfellow was born in February 1807, and died in March 1882. He was a professor and writer and retired from Harvard to focus on writing. He lived the later part of his life, after retiring in Cambridge, Mass., in a home that had served as a headquarters of George Washington. Longfellow lost his first wife, who died at the age of 22 from a miscarriage, and his second wife, who died from burns she had received in an accidental fire.

During the fire, Longfellow received substantial scarring to his face trying to save his wife. He began wearing a beard after that to help hide the scarring.

Longfellow is referred to as one of America's greatest poets, but Longfellow believed not even a great poem could bring the joy and happiness that a child can bring.

Over the last few months, deputies have been attending events where they can interact with the youth in Vernon County and help play a positive role in their lives. It is very disturbing how many calls we get in which children are involved in dangerous situations. Each time I wonder how it will affect that child. In the first part of the poem I mentioned above, Longfellow wrote:

"Come to me oh ye children, for I hear you at your play

And the questions that perplexed me have vanished quite away."

Children are supposed to be full of joy and be the happiness that we find in a harsh and cruel world. It is our job to make sure they have that opportunity.

Day after day I see parents who lose their children, or no longer even have the desire to raise their children because they have become addicted to drugs, or because they have come to the place in their life where they see themselves as more of a hazard to their own child by being around them.

The Sheriff's Office will take every opportunity it can to make a difference in the lives of the children in our community.