Where You've Been

By: Anonymous

What do you do when the place you call home

Is one that you no longer recognize; when you

Forget that place is no mere function of space,

But also a function of time; and the

Crystalline memories you can still see,

With every step forward, move farther from reach?

Looks can deceive; where you are is not where you’ve been.

So you run ‘round in circles, searching for home–

For safety, for comfort, familiarity, love–

‘Til the ground your toes cling to crumbles beneath you

While your castle in the clouds floats off in the breeze

And you realize that once again, looks have deceived you–

Where you are is not where you’ve been.

Turn your feet toward home, but how can you know

Where the heart lies, or if it’s still whole, or if

It’s been splintered, jagged pieces torn off for each person you’ve loved–

In which case, that place may still be one of no return?

So many pieces gone and lessons unlearned, and yet we still

Yearn for the time when we were blind to our own ignorance,

And that’s not a place either, and that’s okay.

Looks will deceive, but the heart finds itself again.

It knows where you are is not where you’ve been.