The History of Paths
© 2004 Eric C. Lind

Footprints are interesting to me.
When one walks in the paths of others,
The fit is never quite right and one becomes

Awkward

Either too gainly or too prancing, too broad, or too thin.

And so the only recourse is to make footprints of your own,

BUT!

Footprints are interesting to me.

The paths that others walk leave a mark of history upon the earth,
and though emulation is possible,
duplication is ineffective.

And so I choose to walk beside the footprints I see...
perhaps for a while,
trying to learn from other's circadian and extrovertive dance
that I might dance more gracefully within the prints my feet implant.

When I cross a path, I sometimes tempt to follow,
or am compelled to change direction,
to follow trails of those before me.

The most fascinating thing of all however is
looking back to see that someone else has followed me,
though perhaps I know not why,
save that perhaps they choose to dance more gracefully
via the imprints of my mark.

And though comforting, I'd prefer to walk aside another,
that company be properly kept
such that the paths don't seem so lonely anymore.

Perhaps that is the answer to my riddle:
Be awkward enough to be noticed, that
those who leave paths to follow
become fascinated by good company rather than

their own paths where

hands

are

obviously

not


linked