The Trip Not Taken

I have a map 
I unfolded and folded it back
Adding a small dot on a new place 
Each time, inside a box it went.
Just like me, the attic my world
My words a whisper, behind four walls
No, I don’t want war.
 
I had the left sneaker too 
Matching the one on the right
Blue, with a yellow swoosh
Had bought them before the trip.
Now all that’s left, the left leg a stump
The new shoe- bloodied, caked in red
No, I don’t want war.
 
I had got the ring
Amidst the tulips, April it must be
She didn’t have a clue, she still won’t
Borders sealed, flights undeparted.
She stays back, but I must go
My country calls, my love can wait
No, I don’t want war. 
 
I got the tickets, passport stamped
My first paycheck, a promise I kept
My father’s first flight, sixteen hours
A foreign land, a daughter’s home.
Remained a dream, a bullet ripped
In the dead of night, the loving heart it stilled
No, I don’t want war.
 
I got my story, won the prize
Grabbed the headlines, photograph of the year
I stand inside the Accademia, addressing the elite
Gaze into David’s eyes, yet picture still
The bluest blue eyes of the child I clicked
Alone, soft amidst the rubble, a city fallen
No, I don’t want war. 
 
I have my dreams
My plans, and my work
I have my future
My love, and my fears
I have my life
My selfish, stupid, flickering hope
No, I don’t want war.

This world is big and has enough place for us all. This world is meant to be visited, admired, appreciated, protected, and above all, loved. Perhaps the greatest love is for one’s country and, rightfully so. Protecting the borders, sovereignty and its people is the duty of the state. But in a world that is often clamouring for war, asking for peace and cessation of conflict does not make you less of a patriot. In a world being torn apart by unrelenting hatred, wishing for the prevalence of humanitarian values does not make you a coward. 
“You may say I’m a dreamer,
But I’m not the only one…”

MS