Peace Corps

Two women in their twenties
Were conversing where I sat.
They chatted ‘bout their lives,
A little this, a bit of that.

But one thing that I overheard
Sure made me pay attention,
For entering the Peace Corps
Was one woman’s planned intention.

She’d just returned from Africa,
Four months in Cameroon.
She hoped her Peace Corps stint
Would take her someplace else real soon.

I marveled at her freedom
And the joys of being young,
The endless possibilities
That she could choose among.

I long ago was in that boat,
No ties to hold me back.
The Peace Corps never was my thing –
Adventure genes I lack.

Yet still, the world was at my feet.
I journeyed and explored;
But then I settled down,
My wanderlust largely ignored.

Just listening to that young woman
Hit me like a slap.
Her youth was like a vast terrain,
My age was like a trap.

Don’t get me wrong – I like my life
And plan to travel more,
But endless possibilities
No longer are in store.