Dear God,

I'm too young to die. I haven't formed my hands or feet. I haven't seen the beauty that is my mother's face, nor the wonders you have created. I'm too young to die.

Dear God,

I'm too young to die. I'm only 5. I haven't finished first grade. I've never made friends with a boy and I have never been to Disney Land.

Dear God,

I'm too young to die. I'm only 21. I haven't finished college. I've never been to Vegas or seen the ocean. I haven't fallen in love or had children. I've never felt a desert breeze.

Dear God,

I'm too young to die. I'm only 30. I've never met the woman of my dreams or had a good job. I never went to my high school reunion. I haven't seen the light of day without a guarded fence or been able to look past my bed and not see bars in almost 12 years. I've never seen a movie star.

Dear God,

I'm too young to die. I'm only 49. I haven't had my second chance at love or met a handsome stranger on a deserted beach. I've never seen the volcanoes of Hawaii or the dirt of Paris. I've never been skiing.

Dear God,

I'm too young to die. I'm only 73. I've never visited my grandchild in Florida. I've never seen an alligator. I haven't written the Great American Novel or rafted down a raging river. I've never seen the sun set over the Colorado Rockies.

Dear God,

I'm only 102. I've seen people go from slaves to senators. I've watched as the number one nation in the world let itself be talked into second place. I've seen women go from behind a kitchen stove to stand behind a judge's desk. I've seen Man outrun a horse in a new-fangled machine, and I watched when he walked on the moon.

But I haven't seen the end of racism. I've never met an honest repairman and I have never met an alien.

Dear God...I am much too young to die.

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