saying hello

...you're a boy who is sick of saying "so long"...

the nomadism continues.

it's not intrinsically any easier this time around.

this may be your strangest place and time yet.

it might be more desert than garden.

however, wisdom laps the shores in mightier waves,

and as promised, He has taught you

to watch, fight, and pray

in volumes, degrees, densities, and masses unbeknownst to you

six, nine, twelve, twenty months ago.

your eyes are keener to see past this

light momentary affliction

than they were then.

all the leaving and arriving and planes and trains and automobiles

may have indeed given you a hearty helping of goodbyesickness,

but it has also cultivated

the dexterity

to say

"hello."

"nice to meet you."

skewl

you've done this a few times.

applied.  enrolled.  advised.  scheduled.

syllabi.  101.  201.  301.

homework.  quizzes.  tests.  papers.  projects.  labs.

notebooks.  pens.  pencils.

MLA.  Chicago.  APA.

deadlines.  due dates.  finals.

you have eaten, slept, and breathed this for years.

regardless, you're not too good

to do it again.

your experience does make you entitled to

laziness,

lackadaisical attitudes,

or a sense of superiority.

your call to humility ain't no quicksilver beckoning,

so buckle down, sir.

old hat, new shoes, pt. ii

as you walk,

you become even more convicted

of some of your longest-held convictions,

as well as ones that have dawned

and that you have donned

in more recent years.

persevere through the political tensions, culture wars,

discussions, debates,

and international competitions

that make your dormant inner gymnast, martial artist, and tennis player churn.

there's truth that will outlast it all.