Parts of me

Quote Prompt:

"Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living."Miriam Beard


Version 1 (five lines per stanza -in case of line limit - 35 Lines-7 stanzas)

Parts of Me

The more I travel
the more I am confused
about the ignorance
of those around me
and their beliefs about the world.

I left them behind once
and when I returned
I found they never caught up.
How can I ever go back
to who I was before?

How can I take part
in bashing this group or that
when my feet have graced
their soil and their faces
have left their print on my soul?

How can I not refuse
to call their country "third world"
when its the only world they know,
and one I'm blessed
they showed me?

How can I not make welcome
those people in my home
when they so graciously opened theirs
to me?  How can I put into words
the change they made in me?

How can I ever doubt the strength
of the human spirit when I've seen
what they must do just to live
and raise their children? How can I not
sense the passion shared with me?

So I walk among my people,
now whole but somehow not,
there are parts of me left scattered,
across the globe and parts of me
made whole by their hospitality and love.


Version 2 (six lines per stanza - 36 lines-6 stanzas)

Parts of me

The more I travel the more I am
confused about the ignorance
of those in my home town. I left
them behind once and they never
caught up.  And now, I can never return
to who I was before my journey.

How can I take part
in bashing this group or that
when my feet have
graced their soil
and their faces have left
their print upon my soul?

How can I not refuse
to call their country
a third world nation
when its the only world
they know, and one I'm blessed
they shared with me?

How can I not make welcome
those people in my homeland
when they so graciously
opened theirs to me?
How I wish they could see
the changes they made in me?

How can I ever doubt
the strength of the human spirit
when I've seen what they must do
just to live and raise their children?
How can I not sense the passion
these people had for their families?

So I walk among my people,
now whole but somehow not.
There are parts of me left scattered,
in countries across the globe,
and parts of me made whole
by their hospitality and love.

SWPoet