In The Agora Poem by Suzanne Hayasaki

I am standing in the agora,
My eyes wandering down every road
Following caravans and dancing bands
Of nomadic entertainers, bangles jangling
In a disrhythmic cadence as they compete
For attention in the sensuous cacophony
Of this cosmopolitan mecca.

I have been untethered and fed,
My back unloaded, watered and left to myself.
I am considering my options: rest or explore.
I could lie down in the shade of the ancient city wall
Or I could wander down one of these alleys.

Part of me is adventurous.
Part of me feels timid.
Part of me is unsure I can find my way back
To my fellow camels and the men who lead us,
Feed us, keep us safe and make sure we have water.

Yes, the burdens we carry are heavy,
The walks exhausting,
The rod exacting,
But it is all we have ever known.

And still the scents of this city are tantalizing.
I smell figs I might forage from a stand.
I hear donkeys braying and monkeys chattering.
Along with the unending din of men's voices,
Arrogant, angry, bartering, wheedling,
Never satisfied, never generous.

And then I see you, human.
Standing in the center of the kaleidoscope
Of constant movement spiraling out
Towards the four cardinal directions
Churning commerce and culture and history.

You seem completely at ease,
Undismayed, unintimidated
By the raw manipulation of the weak
The disregard for the needs of the poor
The fawning of the merchants and servants
On the supremely self-satisfied chieftains.

You catch my eye and hold my gaze.
You open your hand and reveal a date.
You murmur something I can't quite hear
So I take a few steps closer.

Something about your kind, brown eyes
Something in the tone of your low voice
And the smell of more treats in your bag
And the promise of gentle hands

Tempts me to follow you out of this busy city
And into the empty desert with its immense night sky
Leaving behind our friends and families and masters
To test our strength against the four elements

Alone
Mapless
Pathless
With no instructions
With no set destination
But filled with hope
That somewhere in the infinite unknown
Is a home waiting to receive us
As we are.