<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div><span></span></div><div>Observer<div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">I watch how other things travel</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">to get an idea how I might move.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">A cloud sweeps by silently,</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">gathering other clouds.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">A doodlebug curls in his effort to get there.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">A horse snorts before stepping forward.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">A caterpillar inches across the kitchen floor.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">When I carry him outside on a leaf,</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">I imagine someone doing that to me.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">Would I scream?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">In the heart of the day</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">nothing moves.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">No one is going anywhere</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">or coming back.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">The blue glass on the table</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">lets light pass through.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">Something shines</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">but nothing moves.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; ">I watch that too.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 19px; "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px; "><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>- Naomi Shihab Nye</span></div></div></body></html>