The Broken Pilgrim
by Amanda Nowlin
THE BROKEN PILGRIM
I.
They say not all who wander are lost,
but do the wanderers ever wonder
why it’s so hard
to walk against the wind?
Do they wonder when home is?
They say it’s not the destination;
it’s the journey.
But can the journey feel more like trudging?
And the journeyman wonder when
the long ascent will finally end?
They say home is where the heart is.
But what about when the heart
has been broken in two?
And the heartbroken
doesn’t know
which way to choose.
They say one finds what
they are running from
on the road away from it.
But what if the runner
just keeps running
until she can’t anymore?
What if she just lies down
right there in the middle of the path,
as the future passes over the past?
What if she doesn’t bother to
wander, or wonder,
or walk, or run?
Just decides she’s done.
II.
What if the broken pilgrim
lifts her eyes to the hills,
and let’s her weary eyes
see the heavenly sunrise?
What if she listens to the
voice on the wind,
beckoning down the mountain
to Him?
He says:
“Come to me, all who are weary;
Come to me, all who are lost.
Give me your broken hearts;
Give me your heavy cross.”
He says:
“I go after the ones who wander,
until they are safely found.
I am with those who make the journey,
my feet beside them on the ground.”
He says:
“My heart is where your home is;
I will take your shattered parts.
I will face the past you are running from;
I’ve been with you from the start.”
III.
What if the battered traveler
takes His outstretched hand,
and leaning heavy on His shoulder,
continues her way through mountain land.
AMANDA NOWLIN
Amanda is a less-than-perfect pastor's wife and a registered nurse turned homeschooling mom of four. She loves literature, nature, and adventures of all kinds. She has struggled hard through doubt and depression and writes about the grace and love of a good God who sustains her through it all.
You can find more of her work at https://riversinthedesert.substack.com/.