If I Were In Charge Of The World – The Poem
If I were in charge of the world
I’d cancel oatmeal,
Monday mornings,
Allergy shots, and also Sara Steinberg.
If I were in charge of the world
There’d be brighter nights lights,
Healthier hamsters, and
Basketball baskets forty-eight inches lower.
If I were in charge of the world
You wouldn’t have lonely.
You wouldn’t have clean.
You wouldn’t have bedtimes.
Or “Don’t punch your sister.”
You wouldn’t even have sisters.
If I were in charge of the world
A chocolate sundae with whipped cream and nuts would be a vegetable
All 007 movies would be G,
And a person who sometimes forgot to brush,
And sometimes forgot to flush,
Would still be allowed to be
In charge of the world.
~ by Judith Viorst
20 Things I Would Do, If I Were In Charge of The World
- There would be no country, just one world. All people would have one nationality.
- All the houses would be designed by Disney’s art directors.
- Definitely, sweets and deserts would be new vegetables and the most healthy food.
- I would ban formal clothing. Everyone would be allowed to choose an avatar for themselves, a look they can carry all the time.
- There would definitely be a “Control+Z” option for real life.
- I would ban all exams and course curriculum.
- But learning a new thing daily would be compulsory for people of all ages. Topic – Your choice.
- No polluting vehicles for the general public. Cars would only be for old. Younger people could commute to colleges or offices on their horses.
- There would be no diseases and no accidents.
- There would be a magical world where no one disagrees with anyone. This way no holiday/picnic plans would get canceled.
- Universal Basic Income would definitely be a thing. And there would be robots to carry on boring productive works like coding, accounting, strategy formations, building, working in factories, cleaning and sanitation, and normal office jobs.
- There would be no terrorism, no crime, and no fear.
- It would be compulsory for each family to have a pet of their choice.
- All the pigeons would be exported to a separate multiverse.
- The biggest heroes would be scientists finding new things. Their uniforms would have capes instead of lab coats.
- Unlike what Judith Viorst says skipping brush or flush or shower wouldn’t be allowed. And cutting nails would be compulsory.
- No nuclear families, each family would have a minimum of 10 people.
- But there would only be one gaming console in the family. Phones, tablets, and laptops would not have any games.
- Plain water would no longer be healthy. It would be replaced by shakes, lemonades or juices.
- And most importantly, everyone would have a choice to bring back one person from history to life again.
Judith Viorst
Judith Viorst is an American writer, newspaper journalist, and psychoanalysis researcher. She is known for her humorous observational poetry and for her children’s literature. This includes The Tenth Good Thing About Barney (about the death of a pet) and the Alexander series of short picture books, which includes Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (1972), which has sold over two million copies.
Viorst is a 1952 graduate of the Newark College of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers University in Newark, New Jersey. In 1968, Viorst signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War. In the latter part of the 1970s, after two decades of writing for children and adults, she turned to the study of Freudian psychology. In 1981, she became a research graduate at Washington Psychoanalytic Institute after six years of study.
To read more about Judith Viorst, click here.
If I Were In Charge of the World – Poem Summary / Analysis
“If I Were In Charge of the World” lists the changes to the world that Judith Viorst brings about if she would be controlling the world. She would approve of all the things that make her happy.
