PPC 2 Paris Days 2-3

Warmest Welcomes My Auspicious Audience,

Limits are simply checkpoints that, by belief, we are unable to cross. Who defines the boundaries to be pushed in the literary realms? Is it the writer or the audience that sets the lines in the sand? The drawbridge built over limitations is lowered for the few chosen.

Travel with me today as we review the first steps through the beloved city of Marseille! In it resides a culture so strong, the people would lay their chips down for it against any city. However, what of testaments to its magnificence? Ah, maybe I have said too much...(or rather too little) too early.

Poem Explanation:

I landed in Paris and soon took another flight to Marseille. It was truly a blessing, both for arrival and to find a friend to journey with. Chandler, a fellow student in the program, arrived at the airport in Marseille just after me.

We soon found a coffee vending machine, and I made a delicious drink to keep myself awake. I felt compelled to capture every moment with my camcorder. It began to feel as though I could not truly see without it.

Chandler and I burst out of the airport to find our bearings and, eventually, our hotel. There was construction to our side. I assumed it to be for a tram car of sorts, as there were remnants of a rail system in the road.

The poem then fast forwards to a dinner at a restaurant once we had convened with the group. The restaurant had a large outdoor seating section and a small indoor section with bathrooms. We traveled up a steep and tight spiral stair to reach them.

I was intrigued to find a mesh window rather than glass in the bathroom. The sensation of the air and the absence of tint made the street across clearer than day. Our senses are all linked, and I believe that when more senses are activated, each one is enhanced greater.

The mesh of the window reminded me of the process that the waiters described to create some of their favorite beverages. The workers spoke rather good English, though I strayed from overcomplication in my speech.

This viewpoint sparked and fanned my fascinations with the many sites I had already seen and excited me for those I had yet to see!

Poem Explanation:

This poem takes place later in the night where we left off in the restaurant. I felt a particular draw to make this one due to a recurring theme in conversations with the locals of Marseille.

It began with two women I met near our table. They had seen a young girl attempt to sell us flowers, so they provided insight about the situation. They explained how the kids were often sent out to bring back money for their families. However, some will be sent out into dangerous situations.

This came as a shock as the entirety of Marseille was a child-friendly area to my eyes. The kids would be out with their families frequently beyond dark for various events. In that night's case it was for a music festival.

It was this duality that brought a sense of pride in the woman to tell her city's story, yet a hesitancy from fear she would not be able to tell the complete story. However, if she had not told me, I likely would have unknowingly supported the practice.

This theme came again later on with one of the ladies our group had met further down the port. She excitedly regaled us of Noailles. It was described to be "the most city of the city." She too had an unmistakable pride for the city, but when asked to participate in a story she succumbed to the same fears. She kept saying it was a story we needed to tell and a place we needed to experience. However, she felt she could not tell it right.

The lady was Christian. I had wanted to tell her that often in the bible it was those who believed they were unworthy who were most often chosen by God to do his work. However, she was pulled away for a moment by the establishment she worked at before I could do so. In the time before she returned and we ventured off together, it had slipped my mind.

I later wrote this poem as a message, both to her and others who feel the same, to be unafraid to tell your story. One story is incomplete, yet you cannot collect the many stories needed until one is first gained. Do not fear yourself and your potential to be the moving force for change.

"I'm not saying I'm gonna change the world, but I guarantee that I will spark the brain that will change the world" - Tupac Shakur