map on the wall

there is a map on the wall

of the planet earth

it came from National Geographic

it shows me oceans

far-off lands

but the tale it tells is tragic

there are so many places

I'll never go

so many people

I'll never know

but I look at it everyday

there is a map on the wall

of the whole wide world

of countries I will never see

I look at it and think about

all that I have done without

the traveler I could be

going places 

without fear

breathing foreign atmospheres

I look at it everyday

there is a map on the wall

of the planet I call home

though a pinpoint is all I'll ever know

but I still dream and fantasize

what I can't see with my own eyes

about places I'll never go

but my mind is active

and I can see

their images reach out to me

I look at it everyday

as it calls me to obey

the map on the wall