Lessons I learned while I was gone (Poem)

[Batsy]

Lessons I learned while I was gone
By Batshit


It’s been over two years since I hit the road
This life I had long romanticized finally came to fruition
And it’s been overall way different
Than I had anticipated

After leaving you behind

So long ago
I’ve watched myself grow
In so many ways

And my dear friend,
Now that our paths
Have
Once
Again crossed,
I’d like to share with you
A few
Lessons I’ve learned while I was gone

One:

Sometimes shit gets rough
Like,
Real tough

Getting stranded on the side of
The highway
In the desert heat

Being stuck in the snow
On a forest road

Being chased
Away
By an angry housie
Who can’t stand to see
Me
Parked on “her” street
So now I have to flee

Or the many times I was met
With a fate
That I couldn’t accept
And there was nothing I could do or say
That would allow me actual
Tangible
Control
So as a last resort
I prayed
Despite my lack of faith
Because the quickest way to make a theist
Is to put a nonbeliever in a situation
That only divine intervention
Can save them from

But soon enough,
When shit gets rough
I learned

Two:

How to ask for help

Some people get
Embarrassed
When the time for this comes

But the hardest hurdle
Is to get yourself out of your stagnant state of comfort,
Cause sometimes comfort only holds you back,
As progress leaves you behind,
So look a stranger in the eyes,
And say,
“I cannot continue alone”

Which brings me to

Three
The ultimate lesson I’ve learned while I was gone:

I learned that I belong

With you
Together
Our lives intertwined
And every time
I remove my
Presence from your life
The distance between us is felt
So vividly
As every mile I’ll someday
Retrace
To return your way
Vibrates,
Trembles,
Within my rib cage

Do they call it longing
Because I won’t see you
Again
Until a long time has passed
Or do they call it longing
Because I will
At once
Yet again cross
An extensive
Stretch of
So many lengthy miles
So I can arrive back home
To your presence

So many travelers discuss
Debate
Or simply have their own take
On which word for us is more fitting:
“Homeless” or “Home-free”

But perhaps I’ve left behind
A life
Where I’ve called a single roof above my head
My home
So I can find
That my homes
Are truly
The many people
Places
And experiences
I call my own

And since I’ve been gone
For so long
I’m happy
That at least for this moment
We’re here
Together
With each other:
Home

 

[bote]

Nice poem. It brings up a funny topic though, the old trope of a hopeless situation revealing an underlying belief in god. I can only speak for myself, but I've been in a few near death situations and no thought of religion or prayer ever crossed my mind. I was brought up without any religion at all, the most I ever heard on the subject was that it was bullshit. So when I hear people talk about finding religion in a tight spot, it makes me think that they were probably introduced to those beliefs young and they just rediscover them as a coping mechanism in a crisis.

 

[Batsy]

Nice poem. It brings up a funny topic though, the old trope of a hopeless situation revealing an underlying belief in god. I can only speak for myself, but I've been in a few near death situations and no thought of religion or prayer ever crossed my mind. I was brought up without any religion at all, the most I ever heard on the subject was that it was bullshit. So when I hear people talk about finding religion in a tight spot, it makes me think that they were probably introduced to those beliefs young and they just rediscover them as a coping mechanism in a crisis.

That’s an interesting thought, thanks for sharing. For me, I’m not religious and those situations don’t make me religious, I just sometimes pray in the moment because it at least feels like I’m doing something to help myself

 

[bote]

That’s an interesting thought, thanks for sharing. For me, I’m not religious and those situations don’t make me religious, I just sometimes pray in the moment because it at least feels like I’m doing something to help myself

Sounds like a good coping mechanism to avoid panic. I've wondered if it might be better to have a spiritual structure to help guide or to fall back on, but I guess the grass is always greener.

 

[The Hiker]

Beautiful, thanks for sharing

 

[Batsy]

Beautiful, thanks for sharing

Of course! Thank you very much