Caravan

Yesterday, sitting at a table near the door

Of a restaurant, I saw a family—

Mother, father, daughter in her early teens—

They passed by me, and

As I watched them leave, it seemed to me

That they had the gait of a camel,

All of them, going by with their

Slow dromedary walk,

And for an instant, I was transported

To a land of hot suns and blazing sands

Where caravans of man and beast,

Laden with untold treasures,

Make their way to exotic and mysterious cities

With a slow dromedary walk.

Dan Verner

August 1, 2016