The Bystander

{St. Petersburg, Russia}

{Helsinki, Finland}

{Mumbai, India}

the world was at her feet
as she ran in the wind
and chased the flurries
of her feelings and dreams.
a moment of time
a cascade of memories
and to the world she was blind.

as a bystander,
she observed their faces
stoic and set -
like the weather outside.
as a bystander,
she listened to their language,
stout and strong -
like they were.
as a bystander,
she felt their poverty,
with her heart and soul.
as a bystander,
she slipped on their shoes,
and walked a mile or two.

and after it all,
when she returned home,
they said she was a world traveler.
but she only felt the poverty
of her own experience.
and she kept their faces,
and language, and shoes,
saved in her mind for another time.
saved in her mind for another time.