On This Day of Independence

(July 4^th, 2007; Flying through NY, hovering over Liberty)

I am not ready for take off. Still not used

To the feeling in my stomach when I get

Unmoored, hurtled into white, travelling light

In transit to an unknown desi nation

Leaving behind fragments of forgotten life

All locked away in neatly labelled boxes.

I miss the comfort of having my feet planted

In the familiar footprints left by many

Old shoes; it takes too long to break in, to

The walls we build so carefully around us

Of independence, space, and privacy –

One man’s dream, another’s prison cell.

If loneliness is the price of liberty

Lend me the cords that keep us bound together

As one. Come, unity. Here, take my roots,

And weaving it through yours, we’ll let ourselves

Fall into one another. Let us dare

To make ourselves dependent, on the beauty

Of hearts that feed each other words of life.