As I write this, I'm waiting for our students to return from their weXplore, a five-day excursion that takes students beyond their host city for immersive cultural experiences. For the past two months, we as a school have called Maun, Botswana, our home. It's a small town on the edge of the Okavango Delta and, for many travelers, a doorway into Africa. But Maun is only one perspective, and it...
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This poem is about what I saw during the scavenger hunt in Berlin. There were padlocks with engraved names everywhere. Apparently, lovers put them there and throw the key in the river to represent their unbreakable and everlasting love.
An engraving, permanent and everlasting,
will weather the storms, and prevail through
the howling winds.
A padlock, though
is seemingly interminable.
Two beings step out of a fairytale,
one that little girls and big girls dream of.
Embracing each other passionately,
She pulls an object from her overcoat.
He tentatively reaches out for her hand,
a source of warmth and safety,
from winter’s icy glare.
On a bridge over troubled water,
they stand. I cannot fathom their history,
past, or future,
But at this moment they link,
unbreakable.
The padlock is fastened on the railing,
with a heavy click.
And there it will stay,
throughout history.
Then comes the key,
The only one that can
make the bond surrender
between the padlock’s body
and gripping arm.
She releases it from her grasp,
and down down down it falls.
It cuts through the icy air,
and plops into endless azure,
sending ripples through the deep.
Lost? Gone forever?
Quite possibly,
but that was exactly what they hoped to achieve.