Two Worlds

My beautiful Abigial wrote this for school...and she did such an amazing job of inviting us into the simple realties of her two "worlds" that I had to share. Please excuse me while I cry for the rest of the day. (But really, I am so proud of her!)

by: Abigail Hepner

Bread Choices

I walked down the aisle,

in the biggest store

I had ever seen.

My mother told me to get bread

but how to find such a small thing in such a big store.

I walked,

then asked,

then walked some more.

I turned onto the aisle

pointed out by the lady in blue,

only to be struck dumb at mountains of bread.

Whole-wheat. Rye. Almond.

Sliced. Whole. Thin. Thick.

Sweet. Sour. Rolled. Flat.

Too many options in such a big store.

Mother came and picked a yellow bag

I was crying,

too many choices.

That was my first experience in America’s big and better world.

A Different World

Back in Serbia,

walking to the store

because mother needed bread.

I walked in and said hello to my friend.

We chatted about her son,

he went to the same school as me,

and chatted about my mom

and chatted about the family

and chatted about my trip to the New World

and she handed me the only bread option there was.

I was short 20 dinar

but “next time” she said

as she slipped a lollipop into the bag.

A Newer Different World

We move to another city

and I am older now.

I will miss the city where everyone smiles

and waves

and knows all our names.

I walk to the new store

by our new house

I smile at the new lady

We chat about how I moved,

and where I am from.

In a bigger city I have two options of bread.

I am 20 dinar short

but “next time” she said

as I made a new friend.

This is a new world but still the same world.

Leaving My Home

I am even older now

and have to go back to America soon

to go to college.

I will miss the country of warm smiles

and little chats with all the customers in a little store

and the trustworthy folks that know a little girl

will come back with 20 dinar.

Choices

Picking a new life is hard,

harder than picking from hundreds of bread.

What will I do?

Where will I live?

But, I have learned that choices take time.

First chose between wheat or rye,

then decide sliced or whole,

then thick or thin,

sweet or sour,

rolled or flat.

And in the end the choice is not too hard.

Sometimes it takes time to learn

if you like sweet or sour better.

But in the end,

bread is still bread

and life is still life.