Home and Away

It is that time of year of the great escape
Abandon the treadmill of the daily round
Head for the shore, seek a wide landscape
Everyday worries we strive to confound

Yet the exodus is not without its own travail
Would that we could be transported without stress
That in our moving calm might still prevail
No anxiety inhibit our hopeful progress

And on arrival at our chosen destination
Perhaps perplexed by things quite unfamiliar
Still we lack that sense of jubilation
And disappointment creeps in to bewilder

Our holiday should bring us rich renewal
The impact of unanticipated surprise
The involvement in exploits quite unusual
For jaded body and soul a treasured prize

But when excitement slowly ceases to amuse
And thoughts return to comforts of our home
The novelty of absence becomes diffuse
And we find little pleasure as we roam

It is then that home seems more blessed than away
The solace of the familiar brings reassurance
No longer the impetus for us to stray
Prolonged absence would be mere forbearance

Ken Fisher