I've walked a long way - Modern Poems About Hope and Resilience

I've walked a long way

— Mobaidul Sagor

I have walked a long way
Through the thorny path in the hemlock woods.
A thousand thorns pierced my feet—
I endured that bittersweet pain in silence.
They say—I drowned and vanished
Into a land unknown.
Please take me to the blooming bamboo grove
As soon as you can.
I’ve told you a hundred times—
By the banks of the Rhine—
You mistook me for a turtle.

I have walked a long way
On roads strewn with shattered glass.
I saw red blood dripping from my feet.
I’ll cross centuries with these broken legs.
I do not complain,
I never said you were cruel.

I have walked a long way—
The skin of my feet peeling away.
Still I walked—with no desire for gain.
I asked for a single drop of crystalline water,
And in return, received a stream
Of venomous wounds and hollow deception.
I never went
To the forbidden red city—
That awakens after dusk.
My tender heart never accepted it.
I never wanted to walk—
But these two legs of mine?

I have walked a long way—
And the roads of the world bear witness.
You will find my footprints
On the Pamir Plateau,
Across the Balkan Mountains,
Along the banks of the Tigris River,
And at the edge of Victoria Falls.
I have never lied.
I’ve waited forever—
And still, I walk.