POETRY
Two Spiritual Journeys
The friendship of a turtle and butterfly
Closing his eyes to avoid birds in the sky,
He used the sun as his only guide
91% chance he was going to die
Compared to the ocean, he was so small in size
In his shell, he tried to hide
But there, he failed to escape the lies
Of his own tormented mind
He couldn’t just stay there crying
But how could he possibly stay alive
With the crashing waves and trashing riptides
But when he made it to the water, he began to glide
His heart was beating, soaring with pride
So I soared up into the sky
A better glimpse of the scene I tried to spy
I floated overhead, but he looked terrified
I quickly clarified that I
was butterfly.
Who identified with his battle cry
Being kind of shy, he blushed and said, “life is a wild ride.”
Then he rode off, and we said our goodbyes
Into the ocean, he began to dive
Deeper and deeper to where the sun didn’t shine
What could he possibly be trying to find
Perhaps his soul, could the water purify?
Was he looking for an angel or maybe a simple sign?
Could a turtle swim this deep and still survive
He knew that in the dark, he was never blind
Because in these moments, something always shines
Even in the dark, he just keeps on flying.
I could no longer see him with these eyes of mine
Up into the sky, I decided to fly
I couldn’t tell how far I had to climb
But I knew my soul wanted to be high
The sunlight so bright it almost left me blind
But in these moments, there is the darkness of my mind
All I have to do is relax and close my eyes
Even in the light, I just keep on flying.
I was asked the question, “what characteristic or trait do you value most in a friend?” This poem was my answer. What’s yours?
