"Reflections: Poetry Abroad" by Juliana Cosenza

“Meant To Be”

Strolling through Downtown Amman

Strolling through downtown

I took a moment to look up from my phone

In order to appreciate my surroundings

From the quaint cafes, all the street art, to the local tailor shop

Suddenly I caught a casual glimpse of the Temple of Hercules

Subtlety poking through the city landscape

And something drastic changed within me 

In that moment I was certain

That there was a reason for everything

That brought me to this place, at this time, at this exact moment

I am living in the now

Despite the remnants of an empire from millennia ago

Someone must have known

If not the ancient civilizations,

Then a greater force of nature

Perhaps a divine one

That the pieces of this prehistoric masterpiece

Could have such an indescribable impact on me

At this moment in time

Perhaps this is what living in the moment truly feels like.

Wadi Mujib. Photo credit: Cosenza, 2019

“Finding Myself With Nature”

A Moment of Reflection at Wadi Mujib

I forgot just how powerful Nature is

Until I embarked on a trail

She was at every corner, 

Through her, it was impossible to fail

Though it took a lot of patience

With many steps gone awry

An overwhelming sense of peace filled me

Once I closed my eyes,

Lifting my feet,

I allowed the water to carry me

As if I was one with the current

And we would never encounter defeat

Together we could never

Floating on my back I quickly learned

That no matter how many missteps or wrong turns,

We would always find our way back

To the beginning

Yet there was no end

Floating backwards yet moving forwards

There was no message that Nature could not send.