I have seen into the eyes of a stranger

I have walked the footsteps of a refugee

I have heard the soldiers commands on the battlefield

I have felt the sorrow for someone I have never met

The poetry we read connects us

It reveals the deepest parts of us

We all look different

We all have different experiences

But, through our poetry,

We are all the stranger

The refugee

The soldier

The grieving

Our poetry connects us

Our poetry is us