I have visited great cities in this world
and found them speechless, silent,
hoarse, with voiceless laryngitis
I strained my ear, but could not hear them.
Dubai opened its mouth and gurgled strange noises at me
through a gaping hole of opulence and luxury.
Amsterdam confused me with too many streets,
too many faces, and too few fixed opinions.
Glasgow sputtered about old and new
and lost its voice in compromise.
London, Paris, Joburg, stared at me with silence,
with no introduction and no identity.
It was only when I stood in the open field of the Karoo,
with my toes curled into its warm sand,
with endless emptiness, stretching before and above,
that I heard a clear and distinct voice calling loudly,
welcoming me home and stretching its embrace wide.
My soul responded with a resonating yes! and I was at peace.
