Shrouded in the mist of time,
Lost in the fog of memory,
Separated by an invisible screen,
past generations the present warn,
In words both clear and sublime,
Not to tread the path of infamy.

And so each generation tills its land,
Ploughs the field of optimism and hope,
Sows the seed of a brave new world;
But insists it can manage and cope,
Relying on the knowledge of its day,
Keeping the wisdom of the past at bay.

They create new facts on the ground,
Time bombs ready and primed,
A poison chalice to hand down
To generations yet unborn.
And so the wheel turns full circle again,
For there is nothing new under the sun.

Isam Hussain

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/nothing-new-under-the-sun/