I am Harriet Tubman

The civil war has ended, but my fight never does
I cannot remember a day when I rested
A day I could stop worrying
Nelson says I should rest
Let someone else take care of the world’s problems
But, I cannot
I have to take care of my people
Lost souls wandering,
Not knowing what to do with themselves
A lifetime of structure is not erased with the single sentence:
“You are free.”

My home I have stretched open
To the elderly
A bundle of hunched shoulders and brittle old bones,
Yet, a fire still dancing in their eyes
To the sick
Dying yet full of life
To the children of the world
Bathed in blood
Nevertheless, their innocence withstanding

To all, I welcome with open arms

I am a warm blanket in the burning flames of winter
I am the North Star guiding my people to a new way of life
I am a mother
I am a father
I am a friend
I am Harriet Tubman