Journey

I began this journey over three years ago.

I felt like a sail boat tossed on the sea towards a horizon of possibilities.

I was finally getting a chance to make a human wrong….right.

Sometimes the road seems long,

The journey endless;

As the case load increases;

Stories from different clients coincide and collide,

So many questions,

Fewer answers,

It seems unfair that she has to decide between food and medicine.

That her rent is high and her wages low.

Resources few, the demand great,

From seeking pro bono attorneys,

To low cost medical clinics,

More and more tales of inhumanity,

Anger burns within me like a flame,

Sometimes, it leaves me feeling numb.

From systems that seem so powerful,

To laws that seem more unjust than just,

While politicians indulge in their own projects, and cut essential services

While safe havens often shut their doors to those whose immigration status is a blur

I wonder if my voice has abandoned me.

Am I really being helpful?

Am I really making a difference?

I don’t want to be a band aid

Real change is what I want

For my clients, the system and even me

So I keep going.

I see her resilience and she passes a citizenship exam entirely on her own, despite speaking only a little English.

I see her strength as she takes on the sole responsibility of raising her three young children.

I even see her advocate for others in similar struggles.

I see communities rise up in partnership to meet their needs.

I discover and rediscover that I still have my heart that listens and my voice that speaks.

I pray and I hope that I will keep them through every journey.

The sail boat sets sail again.

This time safeguarded against the wind and the waves,  

Protected by memories and successes that sustains me.