Flowers are Red

[Jason]

Earlier today, a friend of mine gave me a CD collection of Harry Chapin songs. When I hit track 10 of the first CD, and started listening to the song, chills started running up and down my spine.

I've always enjoyed Harry Chapin, but never heard this song before (doesn't get much radio play, I guess), so I'm guessing there may be others out there.

If you've never heard it (and even if you have), try to track down a recording of "Flowers are Red" by Harry Chapin. It is an amazing song with an amazing message. Anyone out here on the forums who are parents (especially new parents) definitely need to listen to this song. Teachers, too, should listen.

It's amazing that a song written 30 years ago points out a problem that plagues us still today. Too many people are trying to force kids to "fit" instead of allowing them to explore and discover (I mean, for crying out loud, look at the whole "no child left behind" initiative that started just a couple years ago. Another effort at cookie-cutter education.)

Anyway, I digress. Listen to the song. It's message is there. And pass it along to others - maybe if this song gets some new exposure it might succeed at it's original goal (and, if so, better late than never, right?)

- Jason

[Tom E.]

Thanks for bringing up this song Jason. It's one of those lessons that seems so obvious, yet gets ignored by so many people - epecially with schools now teaching toward the No Child Left Behind tests, so they don't lose any funding. (or as we call it here, "No Child Left Untested")

The first time I heard this song was at a concert during one of Harry Chapin's last tours - I was about 15 at the time. The second time I heard it was a year or two ago, when I happened
to catch part a concert on PBS. It was kind of a double whammy - first, just hearing a song that I only heard once 25 years ago, and second, the change in perspective from being older and having my own children.