'My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.' -- JFK

For JFK

May 29, 1917 - Nov 22, 1963

Ask not why

Ask not why those shots rang out, their retort echoing across the crowded Plaza.

Ask not why those bullets coursed through the warm Texan air, to strike with measured,

deadly precision. Ask not why the smell of cordite invaded the senses and stung the innocent eyes.

Ask not why the dreamers are always besieged by those who would conspire in the shadows.

Ask not why their urge to drown potential in the abyss of negative thought, word and deadly deed.

Ask not why the inner light is detested and feared by the forces of darkness. 

Ask not why the lesser men are loosed in time to hate all, to undo what was almost complete.

Ask not why the lamb was slaughtered in the arena by the ungodly, his blood congealed in the sawdust.

Ask not why the faceless brood bayed with savage, inhuman lust for his life force.

Ask not why the contorted, brutish minds attempt to justify their twisted tenets.

Ask not why evil holds its sway in a vise like grip with the tenacity of the hellish beast.

Instead ask how. 

How do we ensure that it does not repeat?  How can we keep his message of hope and optimism alive?

Ask what. What can we do for our country, our world?

Ask when. When will we see the likes of him again? Ask where. Where do we begin? 

Remember, lest we forget the greatness stolen from us that bleak November day. .                                                                                                                                                   

 Find more JFK-related content here

From "The Journey: A Nomad Reflects."

For Sale at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692500944/ref=rdr_ext_tmb

Also for Sale:

Don’t Die with Regrets: Ireland and the Lessons my Father Taught Me.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0615975860