Purpose

I stir at the loosening dirt around me Who am I? What is my purpose?

A trickle of coolness seeps through the earth My instincts kick in And I soak in the moisture ... Months pass, I feel my roots expanding Every day, I grow stronger

Each part of me is useful, Each part fights to be the strongest To be first I need to work harder ... I've grown an extra addition to my family Small green bulbs extend into the dirt I now have another reason to fight for

One day large tremors shake the earth And a muffled sound fills my senses Suddenly a ripping sensation causes me to silently scream ... My reason to fight is being teared apart, My now brown fruit is being plucked from the dirt I weep for it, but what can I do otherwise?

Now I don't feel pleasure in things anymore What's the point? I am just a shattered soul, alone in the world ... Eventually I grow more of those tiny, precious bulbs But I fear that if I care too much They will be torn from me again

So I separate the rest of me from it It shrivels up and dies without my nutrients I try to tamper down my feelings ... A few weeks later, the vibrations come again I am torn from the dirt once more then to my confusion I am put back

What happened differently? Why didn't they take my fruit? What is my purpose? ... Years flew by I have learned the speech of the tremors But they have not visited since

Then one day, they come again My fruit is ripe Are they here for them? ... I am ripped from the dirt, just like old times I hear their speech They say,

'My, this old plant still bears potatoes' 'And they're mighty big as well' 'Looks like she has a purpose after all' ... I tremble with understanding I have finally found out what I was born to do I wasn't born for heartbreak

I wasn't born for loss I was born to fight, Born to provide

At last I have found my purpose